5 Ten years ago – in July 2014 – the Israeli-Canadian real estate entrepreneur David Azrieli passed away in Montreal at the age of 92, leaving an architectural legacy for both Israel and Canada. You may be deeply familiar with the landscape-defining Azrieli Centers in Tel Aviv or Montreal. Having been born in Poland - where he lost his family in the Holocaust - he moved to Israel in 1948, becoming a prominent figure in the real estate, construction and philanthropic fields, before emigrating to Canada in 1954. Fast forward to today, and the partnership between Israel and Canada has expanded well beyond real estate since the two countries established relations 75 years ago. In this latest edition of IsraelDesks magazine, we speak to those in the know – private practice lawyers, industry bodies, such as the Israel-Canada Strategic Network (ICaN), a bilateral business platform for Israeli and Canadian innovative companies to engage and scale up, and global investment platform OurCrowd that connects investors with early-stage start-ups. They all shared their thoughts on the latest trends, opportunities and challenges in these uncertain times. While the current war against Hamas has clouded some of Israel’s relationships, ultimately the commercial synergies and common aspirations have held true, and, according to many experts, will hold firm going forward - to the benefit of both countries. Back in 2014, Israel and Canada signed the Canada-Israel Strategic Partnership Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to bolster cooperation in trade, energy, defense, security, R&D, international aid and development, among other things. Five years later – September 2019 - the 1997 Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement (CIFTA) was amended, eliminating or reducing tariffs on virtually all products. Today, in the field of technology, the relationship has deepened further. Israel and Canada: A partnership to build on
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