Milestones in the Canada-Israel Relationship
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MILESTONES IN THE CANADA-ISRAEL RELATIONSHIP 1947 Canada is one of 11 member countries of the United Nations Special Committee on Palestine, which developed the partition plan to create two states for two peoples. Along with 33 other countries, Canada votes at the United Nations for Resolution 181, the plan to partition British Mandate Palestine into Jewish and Arab states. 1949 Canada accords full recognition to the State of Israel, officially establishing diplomatic relations between the two countries. 1952 Israeli Foreign Minister Moshe Sharett makes an official visit to Canada. 1953 Canada opens its first embassy in Israel, and Israel’s first Ambassador to Canada takes residence in Ottawa. 1957 Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Lester B. Pearson is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his leadership during the Suez Crisis and Middle East Peace. Canadian troops were part of the United Nations Emergency Forces (UNEF) that subsequently kept the peace in Sinai and the Gaza Strip. 1958 Israeli Foreign Minister Golda Meir visits Canada. 1961 Israel’s first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, visits Canada, marking the first state visit by an Israeli to Canada. 1967 During Canada’s centennial at the World Expo in Montreal, Zalman Shazar makes the first visit to Canada by an Israeli President. 1969 Extradition treaty established between Israel and Canada. 1971 Agreement established between Canada and Israel on commercial scheduled air services. 1978 Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin visits Canada. 1980 Agreement struck between Canada and Israel on film relations. 1989 Israeli President Chaim Herzog visits Canada and addresses Parliament. 1992 Canada is asked to assume the chair of the Refugee Working Group (RWG), set up to complement local efforts to address the refugee issue (suspended in 1996). 1993 Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin makes first official visit to Canada. 1994 Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin makes second official visit to Canada, and the Canada-Israel Industrial Research & Development Foundation (CIIRDF) is established. 1996 Canada and Israel sign the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement (CIFTA). 1999 Canada and Israel sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) committing to common action within cultural and educational progression. 2000 Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien visits Israel. 2001 Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Manley visits Israel. 2002 Israeli President Moshe Katsav visits Canada, and Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Bill Graham visits Israel. 2004 Agreement established on bilateral cooperation in private sector industrial research and development. 2005 MOU between the Israeli Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency for cooperation in the exploration and use of space for peaceful purposes. Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew visits Israel. 2007 Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay visits Israel, and Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni visits Canada. 2008 Canada and Israel sign a Declaration of Intent to enhance cooperation in the area of public safety. Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier visits Israel. 2009 Chief Justice of Canada’s Supreme Court Beverly McLachlin visits Israel. Canadian Industry Minister Tony Clement and Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Jason Kenney visit Israel. Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon visits Israel twice. Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman visits Canada. 2010 Israeli Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz visits Canada; Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visits Canada. To celebrate 60 years of diplomatic relations between Canada and Israel, the two countries simultaneously issue a joint stamp. Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak visits Canada. Canadian International Trade Minister Peter Van Loan, Treasury Board Secretariat Minister Vic Toews and Transportation Minister John Baird visit Israel. 2011 Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman visits Canada; Canadian Minister of Defence Peter MacKay visits Israel to sign an MOU on Defence Relations with his Israeli counterpart. 2012 Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty and Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz visit Israel. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres visit Canada. Head office: cija.ca 45 O’Connor Street Suite 730 Ottawa ON K1P 1A4 Halifax . Montreal . Ottawa . Toronto . Winnipeg . Vancouver . Jerusalem.