Study Tour to Brussels

In was in June 2007 when CSEPS organized the first academic study tour, the first of its kind in Israel, to NATO headquarters, institutions of the European Union and the Jewish communities in Europe. The study tour was conducted within the Centre's Jean Monnet course titled "The European Union, Israel and Jewish communities in Europe", instructed by our Executive Director Dr. Sharon Pardo.

For 4 days some 18 students from the Politics and Government Department and from the Pilots' Academnic Programme were given the opportunity to be "Israeli Ambassadors to Europe". Members of the delegation toured and relaxed with senior officials in the various Institutions as well as with European decision makers and leaders of the Jewish communities in Brussels, and discussed various questions pertaining to the European Union, relations between Europe, countries in the Mediterranian basin and the Middle East, and relations between the European Union an the State of Israel.

As a part of the meeting and discussions the participants were exposed to European Institutions and their work methods, their decision making processes and how both domestic and global European policy is shaped. In a meeting with leaders of the Jewish communities, the problems of antisemitism, assimilation and emigration, while stressing the importance of Jewish-Israeli-European dialogue.

Before leaving for Brussels the students participated in two preparatory meetings, during which they met Israeli decision makers from the Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of Defence. The objective of these meetings was to expose the participants to the official positions of the State of Israel regarding European organizations and institutions.

The unique study tour, which became from single initiatiative to an annual activity, is very important for understanding and enhancing the complex relationship between Israel and the European Union, and for thew assimilation of values common to Israel and EU by the young generation. We trully beleive that our efforts to bring this kind of activity to reality from year to year force the curiosity and a will to change within Israeli students and young generation.

This year it was already the third Study Tour to bring a new group of BGU representatives to get a serious look inside these complex entities like NATO and EU. Very hot discussions were held at the meetings with senior European officials regarding the recent opeartion in Gaza Strip by IDF and the new sessions on coming up Action Plan between EU and Israel. The very intensive four days in the heart of European and NATO decision making playgrounds took the BGU students deep into the complicated and at the same time exciting processes of these organizations. We also very gratefull to the Israeli Embassy in Brussels which organized for BGU students meetings with it's senior staff expailing their diplomatic work processes.

This activity is launched with the generous support of NATO Public Diplomacy Division.