Israeli President Isaac Herzog is set to depart for Romania on June 28 for a two-day state visit at the invitation of Romanian President Nicușor Dan.
Herzog will start his visit in the city of Iași (sometimes referred to historically as Jassy), where he will take part in a state ceremony marking 85 years since the Iași pogrom, one of the worst massacres of Romanian Jewry during the Holocaust, in which thousands of Jews were murdered by governmental forces under Marshal and Leader Ion Antonescu.
The president will then take part in a reburial ceremony for 22 victims of the pogrom whose remains were recently identified, after which he will visit the Holocaust museum and additional memorial sites in the city.
The following day, Herzog will continue to the Romanian capital, Bucharest, where he will be received in a state ceremony at the Presidential Palace and hold diplomatic meetings with Dan and senior government officials, the President’s Office said.
The Israeli leader will then address the Romanian Parliament, and will also meet with the leaders and members of Romania’s Jewish community.
The invitation to Herzog was extended against the backdrop of the two countries’ shared commitment to preserving the memory of the Holocaust and the history of Romanian Jewry, the President’s Office stated.
“The visit is intended to deepen the longstanding friendship and cooperation between Israel and Romania, a member of the European Union and NATO that maintains cooperation with Israel across a wide range of fields,” it added.
