Hello Mr. Hacker,

I am very pleased to meet you virtually, and am very fortunate LTC Matan Or thought of you when I mentioned a desire to visit Partner Communications during my upcoming visit to Israel.  I will be visiting there at the end of this month (26 Oct-1 Nov 2019), in preparation for bringing my students back in April (18-24 April 2020), and I would enjoy the chance to meet you or your colleagues at Partner.

Perhaps Matan told you a little about our program here at the Eisenhower School, National Defense University (NDU), which is located in Washington, DC.  I am happy to include here a 2-page information sheet about the school, my course, the students, and our educational objectives.

Additional background is included in the email below, which I sent on October 3^rd to two individuals listed on Partner’s public-facing website when I requested an appointment.  In the email, I requested to visit your firm in Rosh HaAyin on the morning of October 28^th.

The email describes my course’s focus areas, which include telecommunications.  We are very eager to learn industry perspectives—U.S. and international—on 5G telecommunications services and capabilities.  We would like to discuss questions such as these:

- How are 5G services and capabilities likely to change our lives in the next 5-10 years?

- What are the key business issues from your perspective, and how do you think about them?

- How is the 5G rollout being conducted in Israel?  How does it compare with the rollout in other places like Europe, Russia, or China?

- How are you dealing with spectrum allocation issues and issues of equipment supply? Etc.

Would you or one of your colleagues be free to meet with me on the morning of Monday, October 28^th, at your offices?  If so, please propose a time.  My preliminary schedule for the Israel visit is attached.  I would enjoy the chance to meet with you, if possible.  If things work out, I would enjoy the chance to bring students back in April.

Our visit will be conducted with the support of the Political Military Bureau Directorate in the Israeli Ministry of Defense, and we have the support and assistance of the International Defense Cooperation Directorate (SIBAT) and the Israel National Defense College (INDC).

At your earliest convenience, please let me know your thoughts.  Also, I wish you happy holidays in Israel.

Best regards,

Andrew

Dear Mr. Amar or Ms. Glazer Shaft,

Greetings from the Eisenhower School at the National Defense University (NDU) in Washington, DC.  I obtained your email addresses from Partner’s public-facing website, and I would appreciate your assistance to route my email to an appropriate person in your firm.  My primary request is to ask if I might meet with a representative of Partner Communications on Monday, the 28th of October, during an upcoming visit to Israel.

As it explains in the attached information sheet, I teach a course at the Eisenhower School called the Cyber Domain/Advanced Computing Industry Study (the 'Cyber IS’).  We teach mid-career U.S. and international military officers (O5-O6), U.S. government civilians, and corporate executives who are pursuing a Master of Science in National Resource Strategy.  In the future, many of these rising strategic leaders will play a role in acquiring new systems, influencing policy development, and resourcing national security strategies.  (As an example, last spring, one of my students was an Israeli colonel, and now he has returned to Israel to take a division command and be promoted to brigadier general.)

My course is about industry, innovation, and resourcing, and this year, we will have four focus areas:

- Cybersecurity/cyberspace operations

- Artificial intelligence (AI)

- Advanced computing (quantum and neuromorphic)

- Telecommunications (esp. 5G)

We are very interested in the relationships and actions among government, industry, and academic institutions that promote innovation, corporate and industrial competitiveness, and economic growth--especially as it relates to the technology and communications industries.  Experiential learning is a big part of the course, and we always take the students on the road to visit firms and agencies in the United States and abroad.  This year, are planning to travel to Austin, Texas, the Silicon Valley in California, and Israel.

I am requesting to visit Partner Communications on Monday, 28 October, because I am aware that you are or might have plans to participate in the rollout of 5G telecommunications capabilities in Israel.  We are very interested in learning Partner’s perspectives on the opportunities and challenges presented by the rollout of such capabilities—everything from spectrum management to infrastructure, cybersecurity, and the projected benefits of new services to consumers and users of such capabilities.  Your perspectives would be very interesting to the students as they compare U.S. and Israeli approaches to the relevant issues, and business decisions, especially since we will be visiting AT&T and Verizon during the semester to hear their views.

The purpose of the 28 October meeting with you would be to get acquainted, help me learn more about your firm (and your 5G rollout plans, if you can discuss them), and discuss options for a future student visit in the spring (window: 18-24 April 2020). 

Fortunately, both visits to Israel are supported by the International Defense Cooperation Directorate (SIBAT) of the Israeli Ministry of Defense (IMOD)--my interlocutor is Mr. Barry Zebrak at SIBAT (Regional Director, North America; barry_zebrak@mod.gov.il; T: +972-3-697-6586).  We are also receiving excellent support from the Israel National Defense College (esp. LTC Matan Or, ormatan@mail.gov.il).

For your reference, I have attached a copy of my preliminary agenda for the trip later this month.

At your earliest convenience, please let me know your thoughts on this proposal, and whether you could accommodate a short visit later this month. (If you don’t expect to participate in the 5G rollout, please let me know that too.)

Best regards,

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