Eli Cohen (politician, born 1972)
Eli Cohen | |
---|---|
Minister of Intelligence | |
2022–2024 | Minister of Foreign Affairs |
Faction represented in the Knesset | |
2015–2019 | Kulanu |
2019–2023 | Likud |
Personal details | |
Born | Holon, Israel[1] | 3 October 1972
Eli Cohen (
Biography
Cohen was born in Holon to a family of immigrants from Morocco.[3] He did his military service as a major in the Israeli Air Force, after which he studied at Tel Aviv University, gaining a BA in Accounting and an MBA majoring in financing and accounting. He also obtained a bachelor's degree in management and economics from the Open University of Israel.[4]
In 2000 he began to work at BDO Global as Head of the Economic Division.[5] In 2003 he joined the credit rating company Maalot S&P and headed the Corporations Division. In 2007 he was appointed Senior Vice President of the Israel Land Development Company.[6]
Political career
Prior to the 2015 elections he joined the new Kulanu party, and was placed eighth on its list.[7] He was elected to the Knesset as the party won ten seats.[8] After being elected, he was appointed Chairman of the Knesset Reforms Committee. He was also a member of the Knesset Finance Committee and the Joint Committee for the Defense Budget.[9] In 2018, as chairman of the Reforms Committee, Cohen welcomed legislation to increase competition in the banking system.[10] Cohen was placed second on the Kulanu list for the April 2019 elections, and was re-elected despite the party being reduced to four seats. He was re-elected on the Likud list in September 2019 and March 2020.
Minister of Economy and Industry
In January 2017 Cohen replaced Kulanu leader Moshe Kahlon as Minister of Economy and Industry.[11] In this capacity, Cohen launched a flagship program to establish development centers for high-tech in the periphery in cooperation with the Israel Innovation Authority.[12] Cohen made it clear that for Israeli high-tech to live up to its potential, it was imperative to increase the number of people employed in technological sectors among the general population and in the periphery in particular."[13]
During Cohen's term Israel signed free trade agreements with several countries. One was the updated
Minister of Intelligence
In May 2020 Cohen was appointed
Foreign Minister
On 29 December 2022 Cohen was sworn in as
In March 2023 Cohen met the UK Foreign Secretary in London to sign the 2030 Roadmap for Israel-UK Bilateral Relations which will increase cooperation in technology, research and development, security and cyber.[22] In April 2023, Cohen inaugurated Israel’s first embassy in Turkmenistan. No Israeli foreign minister has visited this Muslim majority country since 1994. The newly built embassy is located in the capital city, Ashgabat, ten miles from Turkmenistan’s border with Iran.[23] Later that month, Cohen paid a three-day visit to Baku in Azerbaijan[24] after his counterpart visited Jerusalem in March for the inauguration of the Azerbaijani Embassy in Israel, the first embassy of a Shia Muslim country in Israel.[25] Cohen is the first Israeli minister to visit Ukraine and meet with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy since the outbreak of the war.[26]
In May 2023 he signed a customs agreement with the United Arab Emirates Ambassador to Israel to further the trade agreement signed in 2022.[27] Cohen also flew to India with an 36-person economic delegation whose primary goal was promoting water management and agricultural projects. During his visit in Delhi, Cohen held bilateral meetings with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other high-ranking officials.[28] Visiting the Philippines in June 2023, Cohen met with President Marcos to discuss strengthening bilateral ties and exploring new opportunities created by the Abraham Accords and the opening of the Saudi-Oman corridor for flights from Israel, which significantly cuts flight times to and from East Asia.[29]
In August 2023 Cohen revealed that he had attended a secret meeting in Rome with Libyan Foreign Minister Najla El Mangoush, organized by Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani to discuss normalizing relations between the two countries. The news triggered mass protests in Libya, leading to Mangoush's dismissal. Cohen was criticized in Israel for what was seen as a breach of diplomatic practice. An Israeli foreign ministry spokesman said the timing of Cohen's announcement had not been coordinated with Mangoush, catching her off-guard.[30]
On 24 November 2023, during their visit to the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and
Minister of Energy and Infrastructure
On 1 January 2024, Cohen assumed the role of the Minister of Energy, following the Knesset's approval of a power-sharing agreement with Israel Katz between the Energy Ministry and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[33]
Personal life
Cohen is married to Anat,[34] with whom he has four children. They are residents of Holon.[35]
Awards and recognition
In 2018 Cohen was on
See also
References
- ^ Eli Cohen Knesset
- ^ Netanyahu names Eli Cohen as foreign minister; Dermer gets strategic affairs post
- ^ and grievances jaundice Israel's judicial divide Reuters
- ^ Meet Israel’s new minister of foreign affairs, Eli Cohen All Israel
- ^ Eli Cohen Jewish Virtual Library
- ^ Eli Cohen Ministry of Economy and Industry
- ^ Kulanu list Central Elections Committee
- ^ Final Unofficial* results of the Elections for the Twentieth Knesset Central Elections Committee
- ^ a b Eli Cohen Knesset
- ^ The Strum Committee bill was passed by the Knesset in its second and third reading, despite warnings by the Bank of Israel
- ^ Government 34 Knesset
- ^ Israel Appoints New Head for Government's Technology Investment Arm
- ^ Israel Innovation Authority's 2018-19 Innovation Report presents the trends, changes and innovation characteristics in Israel as well as the challenges faced by the industry and the suggested solutions for coping with them.
- ^ Quebec confidential
- ^ Israeli delegation travels to Sudan to discuss normalisation - Israeli radio Kan
- ^ first, Israeli cabinet minister visits Sudan
- ^ Azulay, Moran (29 December 2022). "רוטציה גם במשרד החוץ, בין אלי כהן לישראל כץ; גמליאל שרת המודיעין". Ynet (in Hebrew). Retrieved 2 February 2023.
- Jerusalem Post
- Jerusalem Post
- ^ Oman permits Israeli airlines to fly through its airspace
- Jerusalem Post
- ^ Foreign Secretary's meeting with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, March 2023
- ^ "Israel's FM Inaugurates New Embassy in Turkmenistan Near Iran Border", Haaretz
- ^ Israel Opens First Permanent Embassy in Turkmenistan
- ^ Coming to Light: The Warming of Israel-Azerbaijan Relations
- ^ Foreign minister lauds expansion of Israeli diplomatic clout into Eurasia region
- ^ Israel-UAE free trade deal takes force
- ^ Eli Cohen visits India
- ^ Israeli FM visits the Philippines for first time in 56 years
- ^ "Libya's Foreign Minister Najla al-Mangoush dismissed: Sources". Aljazeera. 28 August 2023. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
- ^ "Israel accuses Spain, Belgium leaders of backing 'terrorism' after Gaza remarks". Politico. 25 November 2023.
- ^ "'I stick to that point': De Croo defiant as Israel summons Belgian and Spanish ambassadors". The Brussels Times. 25 November 2023.
- ^ "Israel Katz becomes Israel's 22nd Foreign Minister". The Jerusalem Post. 1 January 2024. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
- ^ President Isaac Herzog hosted a 75th Independence Day reception for the foreign diplomatic corps stationed in Israel
- ^ FM Eli Cohen to INN: 'Islamic Jihad is frustrated, and its leadership was annihilated' Israel National News
- ^ Tel Aviv University Alumni on The Marker's 2018 List of Most Influential people Tel Aviv University
External links
- Eli Cohen on the Knesset website
- Inaugural address