Israeli official says South Dakota's support for Jewish state noticed in Tel Aviv

Consulate General to the Midwest in Sioux Falls to foster trade relations with South Dakota industries

Firetrucks manufactured in Minnehaha County help put out Israeli fires.

Firearms sold by H-S Precision in Rapid City are actively used in Israel’s ongoing conflict with the terror group Hamas.

And South Dakota’s own Sanford Health and Avera Health both serve patients via telehealth technology created in Israel.

But the possibilities of more trade and innovation between two seemingly unlikely business partners are limitless.

That’s according to Itai Biran, the Consulate General of Israel to the Midwest, who during a series of meetings with Sioux Falls officials and business leaders Tuesday said his home country relies on positive relationships with the U.S. And not just a geopolitical sense.

“The opportunities … are unlimited and our job is to bring Israelis over here to know South Dakota and to show them industry, the companies, and the organizations,” Biran told City Councilors during a briefing at Carnegie Town Hall in downtown Sioux Falls. “And to bring South Dakotans to Israel to see our ecosystem and to make it much much easier for you to work with Israel.”

Biran, whose consulate office is located in Chicago, was hosted by the South Dakota Trade Association, a nonprofit formed earlier this year to bolster the Mount Rushmore State’s standing in the global economy. But beyond fostering economic relationships, the tour also serves as one of appreciation for Biran and his home country, which finds itself in one of the deadliest conflicts to ever afflict the Jewish state.

The Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas killed more than 1,300 of Biran’s countrymen. And though it's a trying time for the country, the support felt from the U.S. and its leaders, including South Dakotans like Sens. Mike Rounds and John Thune as well as Gov. Kristi Noem, can’t be overstated, he said.

“We saw it from Chicago. We saw it from Tel Aviv,” he said. “This support is important to us. It gives us the power and the strength to cope and to do whatever we can to protect our people in Israel.”