In past years the COP has visited the United Arab Emirates and "20 years ago - Qatar" mentioned Stark. Building meaningful relationships for "long term investment" was a goal of the North American leadership based organization, Hoenlein told the media, before the COP participants went to see the Israeli startup success Mobileye on Sunday afternoon.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Sara Netanyahu attended the opening evening gala held in the hotel ballroom for participants and invited guests. 

Following are excerpts from the Prime Minister's remarks:

The Prime Minister began with comparing Moshe Rabbenu to Herzl seeing the rise of antisemitism in Europe;

"I've been developing contacts with the Arab countries and Muslim countries, and I can tell you there's scarcely one, two, three Muslim or Arab countries around the world that we don't have deepened ties with. Sometimes it comes out in the open. A year ago, Sara and I were on a very moving visit, an open visit to Oman, and two weeks ago, we had a very moving visit with the president of Sudan. That's an Arab, or rather a Muslim country, speaking Arabic, that hosted the Khartoum Conference. And in Khartoum, they have all the noes against Israel. Remember the noes? No recognition, no Israel basically. And now, we're discussing rapid normalization.

Israel must keep itself powerful in the region.

"The first Israeli airplane passed yesterday over the skies of Sudan. This is quite a change. The Israeli mochileros, the backpackers, fly to South America and start hiking. We just got down about three hours of their flight time. They don't have to go to Spain and then around Africa. They can now fly directly over Sudan right to Brazil, Argentina, and they can stop on the way in another country, Chad, which also resumed relations with us recently." 

"I'm just telling you what is above the surface. How much is above the surface in an iceberg? It's about 10%. What you're seeing is about 10%. Vast changes are coming because Israel is now a power to contend with, and because collaboration with Israel helps you prepare, secure the future of your people and ensure a better future for your people. Securing the future, the safety of their people is obviously something on everyone's mind, and the greatest threat to the security of the countries of the Middle East and countries in the world is the attempt by Iran to arm itself with nuclear weapons.  

Israel will never let Iran acquire nuclear weapons. Second, we do not let Iran entrench itself militarily right in our backyard, in Syria. We resist that mightily. We take every action that is necessary to prevent that. And I believe we're succeeding. We have taken up arms against a foe that openly calls for Israel's liquidation. Obviously, we're not going to wait."  

The COP leadership presented the Prime Minister with a baseball cap, with Hoenlein saying:

Monday morning, Israel Defense Minister Naftali Bennett was to be one of the first government officials, for a full-day lineup of speakers but was ill and unable to attend.

Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Lion spoke of efforts to build and develop Jerusalem’s economy, transport system, to improve access across the city, and to protect the environment. “This is our responsibility to all the people of Jerusalem: Jews, Muslims, Christians, religious and secular, young and old, men and women. They are all the sons and daughters of Jerusalem, and every day, I am proud to work to build bridges between all Jerusalemites..." and stressed, “There are many people, around the world, who want to divide this city - but we will continue to work to unite the city.”

Israeli President Reuven Rivlin is scheduled to leave for a trip to Australia in the evening. On the way a stop is planned in Nadi, Fiji, to meet with Pacific Islands' leaders for a summit on Thursday 20 / 25 Shevat 5780, hosted by Prime Minister of the Republic of Fiji, Hon. Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama.   

However, President Rivlin addressed the annual COP event in the morning. At the beginning of his remarks, the president commented on the blacklist of companies published by the UN Human Rights Council: “When Israeli and international businesses appear on a blacklist just because they serve Israelis living in the settlements, we will stand with them. We thank the United States for standing with us against this shameful political decision. Israelis and Palestinians are not doomed to live together; it is our destiny to live together and we must build trust between us. We must build a common future based on cooperation and mutual respect. Boycotts do not help this end. Boycotts do not advance peace.”

Speaking to the members of the COP, the president mentioned the recurring theme of this year, “We gather here today to discuss three of the greatest challenges we are facing today: combating racism and antisemitism, deepening the bonds between Israel and the American Jewish community and ensuring bi-partisan support for Israel.”

“Antisemitism is on the rise in the US and around the world. After Pittsburg and Poway, Jersey City and Monsey, the American Jewish community is more concerned than ever. The responsibility for the security of Jewish communities around the world lies, first and foremost, with the local authorities. However, the State of Israel is committed to working with governments around the world to take all possible actions to combat these threats.”

“We are all one family,” continued the president. “Like all families, we have disagreements. But our starting point must always be the unbreakable bonds between us. A safe and secure Israel is essential for the survival of the Jewish people, and a strong sense of connection among world Jewry is vital to the survival of Israel. We must find ways to celebrate our diversity, and to write, together, our future.”

He noted, “The US-Israel alliance must remain above any political disagreements or election campaigns. Our partnership must remain above party politics. I know that maintaining bipartisan support is not an easy task, but it is one that is vitally important to Israel’s national security. Dear friends, we deeply appreciate all that you do for Israel and the Jewish people. We do not take this for granted.”

In conclusion, the President added thanks to Malcolm Hoenlein for years of valuable service and wished William Daroff's success in the future as he takes over COP leadership.

William Daroff and his wife Heidi Daroff are longtime Maryland residents and have contributed greatly over the years to the Jewish community.  In his new role, the Daroffs are planning to move to New York City.