Germany grants 10m. euros to Yad Vashem

Funds will be used to expand museum's activities to locate, purchase documents; Sa'ar thanks German gov't on behalf of Israel.

By TAMARA ZIEVE
Gideeon Sa'ar shakes hands Guido Westerwelle 390 (photo credit: Muki Schwartz)
Gideeon Sa'ar shakes hands Guido Westerwelle 390
(photo credit: Muki Schwartz)
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle signed an agreement Wednesday granting 10 million euros to the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum over the next decade.
According to the agreement, the German government will transfer one million euros to Yad Vashem every year for the next 10 years. The Education Ministry stated that the agreement reflects the will of the German government to support Yad Vashem's activities, which include collecting archival documentation, research and education in Israel and the world.
Education Minister Gideon Sa'ar said that the agreement constitutes an important source of funding, and will be used to expand Yad Vashem's activities and to locate and purchase significant Holocaust documents from archives in Europe, making them accessible to the public via the Internet.
"On behalf of the government of Israel, I express a deep appreciation to the German government for providing funding for this important purpose. This decision reflects the importance that the German government attaches to the subject of the Holocaust. The commemoration of the Holocaust is an endless task," said Sa'ar.
Yad Vashem chairman Avner Shalev also expressed his gratitude: "The German government sees Yad Vashem as a center for global documentation, education and research of the Holocaust and understands its special significance for both the Jewish nation and the entire world."
He praised the agreement, saying it "strengthens the commitment of the German government and the German nation, to the the commemoration of the Holocaust."