During his swearing-in as president of Argentina, Javier Milei presented a hanukkah to Volodymyr Zelensky, who was present during the ceremony.
On Sunday, Volodymyr Zelensky took part in the swearing-in ceremony of Javier Milei as Argentina’s new president. This is the first visit by a Ukrainian president to South America since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
“It is no coincidence that this swearing-in takes place on Chanukah, the festival of lights, and celebrates the true essence of freedom,” Mieli said during his speech on the steps of the parliament building in Buenos Aires. He added that “the War of the Maccabees is a symbol of the victory of the weak over the mighty, of light over darkness and of truth over lies.”
Hanukkah for Zelensky on the occasion of Hanukkah
Milei presented Zelensky, who was present during the ceremony, with a chanukah – a Jewish candlestick that was lit during Hanukkah. It is celebrated in memory of the victory of the Jewish family of Maccabees over the Greeks in the 2nd century BC, and the cleansing and rededication of the Temple of Jerusalem. The name of the holiday comes from the Hebrew verb “chanach” – to consecrate, to inaugurate.
The Festival of Lights is celebrated as a universal symbol of respect for tradition, peace and freedom. This year, Hanukkah started on December 7 and lasts until December 15.
Milei is the new president of Argentina. What are the connections with Judaism?
The Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA) points out that Argentina’s new president has “extraordinary ties” to Judaism. Milei, on his first trip abroad after the election, visited the grave of the Chabad Lubavitch rabbi in New York. He also promised that his first foreign visit as president would be to Israel.
On Saturday evening, the eve of his inauguration, Milei met with a group of relatives of Israeli hostages kidnapped by Hamas in the Gaza Strip during the October 7 attack, lighting Hanukkah candles with them.
Zelensky’s Jewish roots
The President of Ukraine was born into a Jewish family in Kryvy Rih, and many of his relatives died during the Holocaust. Zelensky’s great-grandfather and three of his grandfather’s brothers died after the Germans entered Ukraine. They joined the Red Army to fight the Nazis, and his grandfather was the only one to survive.
Last year, The Jerusalem Post named Zelensky the most influential Jew in the world, emphasizing that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine put him in the spotlight on the international stage.
Vladimir Putin uses Zelensky’s Jewish roots to attack him. The Russian president said in early September that “the West put a Jew in charge of Ukraine to hide the glorification of Nazism.” “The situation is extremely disgusting,” Putin said.
Source: Do Rzeczy
Roy Brown is a renowned economist and author at The Nation View. He has a deep understanding of the global economy and its intricacies. He writes about a wide range of economic topics, including monetary policy, fiscal policy, international trade, and labor markets.
