Poland

Poland is an important country in Eastern Europe with a population and GDP equal to all its Eastern European neighbors combined. It is one of the fastest growing economies in the EU. Poland is part of the Visegrad Group of countries which includes Hunagry, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. Together these countries consist of an important voting block in European institutions. Israel ties with Eastern Europe continue to grow politically and economically.

The painful history of the Holocaust continues to have a significant impact on bilateral ties, including the recent controversy over Poland’s Holocaust law. In recent years, bilateral ties have grown and Jewish cultural revival in Poland has flourished. Many Israelis and Jewish communities around the world trace their roots to Poland and travel there to participate in educational programs.

Israel and Poland share substantial strategic interests, including a close relationship with the United States and cross-border security concerns. This shared outlook translates into close defense cooperation, intelligence sharing, joint military training and exchange of technology and expertise.

Trade relations between the two countries has grown rapidly, amounting over $1 billion in 2017 – a 10% increase over 2016. A growing number of Israeli companies and investors are active in the Polish economy, while Polish companies are forging partnerships in Israel’s high-tech economy.

ELNET in Poland

 ELNET-Poland was established in 2014. The office organizes senior delegations and cooperates with the Warsaw Security Forum bringing top Israeli experts and officials to the conference. ELNET-Poland sponsors the annual Poland-Israel strategic dialogues in partnership with the National Security Bureau of the Polish President.

Marta Kubica

Chief Executive Officer, ELNET-Poland
Marta Kubica brings 15 years of professional and academic experience in Polish-Jewish and Polish-Israel relations. She spent ten years at the Embassy of Israel in Poland, where she supported the Executive Office in liaising with state and local government officials, business, academia, churches and the Jewish community. For the past two years, Marta served as Diplomatic Protocol Specialist at the U.S. Embassy Warsaw. She served as chairwoman of the Jewish Studies students’ association and established an academic exchange program between the Jagiellonian University in Krakow and Ariel University in Israel.

Anna Miszewska

Deputy Director, ELNET-Poland​
Anna Miszewska started her professional career working in a TV station, first as a journalist, then as a news editor. Since 2009, she has been associated with the Auschwitz-Birkenau State Museum, and since 2010 with the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation, where she was responsible for international relations and fundraising. In 2015-2018, she was the General Director and member of the Foundation's management board. Then she took the position of director for development at the Association of the Jewish Historical Institute of Poland. She is a volunteer of the Refugees Welcome initiative, a member of the Program Council and the Audit Committee of the Congress of Women.

Asia Sokołowska

Development & Communication Manager, ELNET-Poland​
Asia Sokołowska has 20 years of experience in brand management and the field of product, promotion and PR management. Among others, she has managed the largest women’s website in Poland – Polki.pl, the most popular parenting magazine. At every stage in the process of creating a brand or product she combines theoretical knowledge with practical experience – from market and needs analysis, concept development and market launch, to project implementation. Thanks to her effective management skills, she is able to dedicate time to charity work – she is supporting a Jewish charity organization, Puszke Foundation, where she is responsible for the promotional and media activities.

Zuzanna Grüner

Project Manager, ELNET-Poland
Zuzanna Grüner is a graduate of the Jagiellonian University (MA) and European Academy of Diplomacy. Her educational background in in International Relations, Foreign Service, Conference Interpreting and Modern Chinese Studies. During her studies she lived a couple of years in South Korea, as a Korean Government Scholarship student and had study visits in the European Parliament. Zuzanna is a professional project manager and event coordinator that used to work for both Polish and international companies.

Joanna Olszewska

Executive Assistant, ELNET-Poland​
Joanna has recently returned from Switzerland where she has been working as a Global Program Manager for Hult/EF. She is a graduate of Collegium Civitas in Warsaw (BA) and the University of Haifa (MA in in diplomacy studies). Her educational background is in International Relations, Diplomacy, and Negotiations. During her studies, Joanna did an internship in the International Security Policy department of the Polish MOD. She also worked as a research assistant for CEPA (Center for European Policy Analysis). Her academic area of interest and focus was the nuclear relations between the West and East.