Celebrating famous Jews from Ukraine: Moshe Sharett

He appears under two names in the history of contemporary Israel. The Declaration of Independence bears the signature of a man named Moshe Chertok, and immediately after the declaration of independence, he became Israel’s first foreign minister, Moshe Sharett. As Sharett, he is also known as Israel’s second prime minister.

Translated from Hebrew Sharett means “His Servant, a man doing his duty,” and this new name was quite consistent with his role in the emergence of the state of Israel.

Six days before the declaration of independence, Moshe Chertok had an unpleasant conversation in the United States with the Secretary of State George Marshall. Marshall demanded to postpone the pending declaration of independence for three months. Returning to Tel Aviv the day before the vote in the National Council of Yishuv on the declaration of independence, Chertok told his friend Ben-Gurion about the US position, and the latter asked Chertok not to elaborate on the content of the conversation with Marshall.

The next day, by six votes in favor and four against, the decision to declare independence was adopted. Researchers of the events of those times believe that if Chertok did not keep his word given to Ben-Gurion, Israel might not exist today.

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