Ladies and Gentlemen; President of the Disney Corporation Weiss, Vice President of Epcot Kalogridis:

I want to welcome all of you Ð on behalf of the State of Israel and myself, to the Israeli Pavilion here at Epcot. You will see many aspects of modern and historical Israel, its technological and scientific achievements Ð and of course, this is just a sampling Ð to see it all you must go there Ð but it is only natural that at this millenium celebration the focus is on Jerusalem, not only because it is the heart of Israel, but also because that is where the millenium began.

I want to absolutely deny the rumor that Disney and we concocted the recent hullabaluh on purpose Ð just to get some free publicity for our pavilion. Not trueÉThis exhibit is not about politics, and it should never have been politicized; anyway, 3000 years of history, since King David established his capital in Jerusalem, speak for themselves.

Jerusalem is indeed the capital of Israel and the heart of the Jewish people Ð no other nation ever had its capital there.

That said, however, Jerusalem is not only for us, the Jewish people, to cherish and to behold; as many non-Jewish pilgrims and worshippers have found out Ð and more will find out during the millenium-year; for never in the entire history of the holy city has freedom of worship and access to the holy places Ð Christian, Moslem and Jewish Ð been as free and unencumbered as in those 32 years since the city was reunited.

What should guide all of us, and does, are the words of the prophet Isaiah: ÒFor mine house shall be called a house of prayer for all people.Ó I have always held that perhaps only by acknowledging the diversity of the people of Jerusalem, can we assure its unity Ð and this too is so perfectly brought out by this exhibit. You know, in the Jewish tradition, peace, ÒshalomÓ isnÕt just ÒhelloÓ or Ògood-byeÓ Ð itÕs part of our basic credo Ð as the scriptures said: it is but peace with which God will console Jerusalem. After all, the very name Ð Jerusalem Ð means city of peace in Hebrew. Yes, peace treaties, diplomatic agreements, etc., are very important Ð but the respect of one people for another Ð is even more important in the long run.

You must not necessarily love your neighbor, but respect him and his heritage Ð and he will respect you and yours. You know, any blackmail is vile Ð because it affects the lives of people Ð none more than political blackmail Ð because it affects the lives of many people.

Political blackmail is just another word for terrorism Ð and I think we should all praise Epcot and the Disney organization for not letting it pass. You are indeed an entertainment group Ð the entertainment group, I would say Ð and your people have been doing a fabulous job. There are no words which suffice to thank the whole Disney organization, its head Michael Eisner, you Al Weiss and George Kalogridis Ð and, of course, the inspired designers Ð everybody who has been involved in conceiving the very idea of a millennial exhibition Ð and offering Israel the possibility to participate in it. Millions, tens of millions will see it, enjoy it Ð and perhaps come back here more than one Ð I know I shall!

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Israel is looking forward to a new reality of peace in our region Ð we hope our neighbors will share our vision. We look towards a time when Jews and Arabs will stand side by side in friendship Ð and perhaps enjoy a theme park which Disney will, hopefully, build soon in the Holy Land.

Thank you.