Hello Matan,
I have attached the two draft emails I sent to our ISMO office to forward to selected IDF graduates of NDU (within the past five years or so). One of the emails is specifically directed to BG Yossi Sariel.
At ISMO's recommendation, I included Maj Gen Michael Edelstein as an addressee in the general email, since he was a recent Israel Defense and Armed Forces Attaché to the United States, and he was a 2009 graduate of the Eisenhower School. I also asked ISMO to send it to the Israeli officer who is currently attending the College of Information and Cyberspace (CIC) at NDU.
I know most people there are now on holiday, but they should receive the message in a few days.
Hopefully, this will turn-up a few more good contacts.
The preliminary agenda for my October trip is listed below (it is also in the draft emails). As we find out which agencies agree to a visit, perhaps you could advise me on sequencing. The first day's schedule is pretty busy, and one or two visits might need to be shifted to a later day (unless one or two agencies are not open to a visit).
Could you comment on whether Partner Communications Company Ltd. or Bezeq Israeli Telecommunication Corp. Ltd. would make a better visit destination to learn about Israeli approaches to 5G? When I first researched these firms, Bezeq looked like the bigger, better firm, but when I looked a little deeper, it turns out Partner Communications has been stronger performer (at least in terms of stock price). I learned that Israel recently restructured some things in the telecom sector to help lower prices for consumers (and improve service), but the changes appear to have hurt each of these companies financially, and now they both appear to be struggling. That is not what I expected. The 5G rollout appears to be in its early phases, and it is not yet clear what either firm will actually do to implement 5G. I think the students will learn a lot from this unexpected situation.
Thank you for your assistance!
Best,
Andrew
ANDREW H. NICHOLS, Colonel, USAF
Assistant Professor, National Security and Industrial Base
Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy
National Defense University
Eisenhower Hall (Bldg. 59), Room 415
andrew.h.nichols.mil@ndu.edu
Office: (202) 685-4319
Cell: (703) 888-6378
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Preliminary Agenda for the Preparatory October Visit
(Subject to change, as some visits may need to be shifted or cut out due to time constraints)
Arrival on Saturday, 26 October 2019
- Col Nichols will be the only traveler
- In-country transfers will be conducted via rental car
Sunday, 27 October (Tel Aviv and Ramat Hasharon)
- Defense Research and Development Directorate (MAFAT)
- Directorate of Security for the Defense Establishment (DSDE)(MALMAB)
- Defense Export Control Agency (DECA)
- International Defense Cooperation Directorate (SIBAT)
- National Cyber Security Authority (NCSA)
- Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Unit 8200
- Israel National Defense College
Monday, 28 October (Tel Aviv, Rosh HaAyin, and Herzliya)
- Check Point Software Technologies Ltd.
- Partner Communications Company, Ltd., or Bezeq Israeli Telecommunication Corp. Ltd.
- Viola Group (venture capital firm)
- Google AI
- IBM Israel Ltd.
Tuesday, 29 October (Haifa)
- Elbit Systems Ltd.
- Intel Israel 74 Ltd.
Wednesday, 30 October (Jerusalem)
- Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Quantum Information Science Center (QISC)
- Israel Innovation Authority
- Israel National Cyber Directorate (INCD)
- MassChallenge Israel
Thursday, 31 October (Beer Sheva)
- Ben-Gurion University (BGU) Cyber Excellence Center
- National Cyber Emergency Response Team (CERT)
- Gav Yam Negev Advanced Technologies Park
Departure on Friday, 1 November
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