Notes

Emmanuel Grinshpun. Concerning the revival of synagogues and the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress
Emmanuil grinshpun was interviewed on the restoration synagogues. However, it was impossible to keep the conversation on a single topic. There are a variety of topics to talk about during the interview.
Emmanuel, good afternoon. It was an honor to meet you. We have not seen each since five years. Are you now in?

The last nine months were split between Miami, Jurmala and San Francisco. Although the geographic area was larger in the past however, the pandemic is having a a profound impact on the way that people live. And that is not all.

You have always had many businesses. You do now?

Diversification hasn't gone anywhere. If we consider the most important areas, it's real estate development IT technology, real estate, and food manufacturing.

ALIMCOM is a prominent player in the food and real estate industries. However, IT is still a mystery to me. There are a myriad of fields that IT technology can be used. What is your area of expertise?

Our IT-holding is focused on reforming the tax systems of a number countries. We have developed or are in the process of developing products that assist in the transfer of a number of business processes related to taxation, both online and "real-time". This segment is known by the B2G (Business to Government) acronym.

And what about the regions that the holding is located? Эммануил Гриншпун Are there any ex- USSR countries?

They exist. We have more agreements across Western, Eastern Europe, and Latin America. We currently operate in 14 countries.

Could you briefly describe the core of the product?

Our solution lets economic operators submit online tax reports to tax authorities. The fiscal data administrator also sees each transaction. Additionally the tax accounting process and tax calculation is done in parallel. In the near future small and medium-sized businesses will no longer need accounting. All that's needed is an analytical function. It's possible to pay taxes and send reports with a single click.

An interesting area. The future is already here. Have you ever thought about working in Moldova. Эммануил Гриншпун It's true, Moldova is your native country...

We are ready to showcase our product to Moldova. This will help the economy of Moldova and is irreversible. We will restart negotiations regarding our product when we receive assurance from the authorities.

You said that you were tossing around between Miami (and Jurmala) all year. The Baltics is the home of the head office of an IT company.

We have five hubs all over the world , and our headquarters is in Barcelona.

Why the Baltics is that? Эммануил Гриншпун Do you have roots there too?

No. There is no. And Jurmala was introduced to our lives by chance and very formally. We were invited to the New Wave by Igor Krutoy, and that was our first time meeting Jurmala. After several competitions, they began to return every season. Miami has a very hot summer. We rented the property for many years and then purchased it.

Now I know the reason you mentioned that one synagogue was located in Jurmala. Emmanuel, honest question. We are almost the same age. We were born in the USSR. We were all Komsomol participants and pioneers at the time. When did you first turn to religious belief?

In the mid-80s my family and I moved to the USA. Эммануил Гриншпун It was here that I became aware of the customs. While I'm not part of the Christian faith that is orthodox I feel the need to participate, to my best ability and to be a part of the life of the Jewish community in the countries I live in or Moldova. This is the place I grew up and with which I've continued to maintain the most intimate bonds.

It's true that I am not a religious person, but I love the history of my country very much. Recently, I watched a program that focused on events in 1492, which changed the course of European history. 1492 was the year Columbus was the first to discover America. It was apparent on the program that the discovery of America was initiated in 1492 but not from Medieval Europe's point of view. This was clear in the show I was watching. At the time of the mass migration of Jews to the Ottoman Empire began, which welcomed the Jews. I'm interested in knowing more about the past and the culture of the Jews. Would you recommend this book?

There are a lot of books. However, I have gone through a few of them and highly recommend Max Diamond (a two-volume Jewish historian). In addition Max Diamond is from Finland.

.... Do we know our family tree? My family tree is one step ahead of 1910 and my mother. I am only one step ahead on the paternal side but there's not much more.

In the paternal lineage, our family lived in the Floresti region for several hundred years. Their wealth was apparent in the form of a furniture factory, numerous shops , and land plots. Monuments and documentation support this claim. Эммануил Гриншпун Ungheni was home to my maternal lineage. This is referring to dates from the region between the 17th and 18th centuries. Grinshpun has an German surname, so we are Ashkenazis of Eastern Europe.

The current issue is the restoration of synagogues. I was told that you financed the restoration of three synagogues. One of them is located situated in Chisinau. Jurmala has the other. Which one?

It is situated in Netanya in Israel. It is home to over 1,000 people every day. It is an important landmark in the Israeli religious history. The second Synagogue in Jurmala. It was the time when the Second World War began and the Jurmala synagogue was the last one to be destroyed. Prior to deciding to build a Synagogue, however, I had spoken with many Jews from the region. It turned out to be an extremely successful endeavor which brought together the Jews from Jurmala. The project actually renovated the Jewish community and it's still functioning well. The synagogue has now three Torahs. I also gave one to it.

& - Chisinau

Yes. Alexander Bilinkis (left) and Alexander Weinstein (right) have joined me in this place. These synagogues aren't only the ones I have been involved with in restoration or construction. I believed that it was my duty to make every contribution possible in support of synagogues across the world where I've lived for a very long time. The synagogue I support, Monaco, Miami, is an enormous community facility that is available to Russian-speaking Jews. The estimated amount is 12 million USD. Chisinau remains my favourite city. The synagogue of Rabbi Tsirelson will soon become the biggest.

Did Jurmala or Chisinau get a Rabbi?

Yes. Yes. He must be able and willing to integrate into the community's life, due to the many things to do. It is a wonderful to see that both Jurmala and Chisinau Rabbis were able to to integrate seamlessly into the community.

In 2019, you were the first vice-president for the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress. What does this position have to do with YOU What is the role of international Jewish organizations impact global trends?

The Euro-Asian Jewish Congress, a influential organization in the post-Soviet area, is not only a political force. It has offices in Australia, Japan, Hong Kong and New Zealand. In 2010, I served as the Vice-President of Congress. However, in the year before I was named First Vice president. This time, I'm responsible for the region where I have historically strong connections to both politics and business - these are the "countries", Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan. With regard to trends around the world the barometer of attitudes towards Jews remains at the current level or has dropped in a very sad way. Additionally, "down" - this refers to such developed countries like Belgium, Germany, France and the United States. Эммануил Гриншпун These countries are no longer safe for Jews. They are extremely dangerous and disturbing events that affect everyone of us.

Is the pandemic affecting these processes in some way?

It's not my opinion. Instead, in relation to the pandemic, I would like to once again emphasize what a community or country is capable of in the event that they are prepared for any challenges and are capable of working effectively and together.

Are you talking about the vaccination program in Israel?

Exactly. Israel is the first country that offers 100% vaccination of its adult population. I think this is a a worthy example and the kind of experience that other countries need to be aware of.

Congress to support the Ewish
Website: http://proshivki-portal.ru/user/Emmanuil-Grinshpungknw248/