Peruvian President Ollanta Humala who is in Israel at the invitation of President Shimon Peres, was given a warm reception on Monday at the Presidential Residence.
Peru is one of the beneficiaries of Israel’s agricultural technology and has received assistance from Israel in other areas as well. Minister of Agriculture, Yair Shamir who met Humala when he visited Peru last May, was near the head of the receiving line that greeted Humala as Peres escorted his Peruvian guest into the reception hall.
Shamir said then that taking into account Israel’s proven abilities in agricultural, industrial and security technologies, he had been given the impression that the Peruvian government sees Israel as a strategic partner in Peru’s economic development,
jerusalem post reported.
Israeli companies have invested in excess of a billion dollars in Peru, primarily in enterprises dealing with agriculture, medicine, energy and telecommunications. Israel also has strong defense ties with Peru that go back for many years.
At his meeting with Peres, the Peruvian leader confirmed Shamir’s impressions and said that he had brought a high level ministerial delegation with him that includes Foreign Minister Eda Rivas and the Ministers of Economy and Finance, Luis Miguel Castilla, and Agriculture, Milton Von Hesse; to also discuss health and education and to see how Israeli technology can be implemented in these areas.
The South American nation is currently working with water technologies that were developed in Israel, he said, and is transferring water from the Atlantic basin to the Pacific basin which enables the irrigation of desert zones in the Pacific region.
In thanking Peres for the invitation to pay a state visit to Israel, Humala said that this was an important visit for him and his delegation, and that it was a great honor for him to represent his country as a friend of Israel’s. He was aware of the esteem in which Peres is held in the world as both a political figure and a national patriot, and declared what a pleasure it was for him to be able to meet Peres in person.
“We know that Israel is currently going through a difficult period and we are great supporters of the peace process,” said Humala.
The head of the Israeli State had referred to the peace process in his welcoming address and had said that he was greatly encouraged by the remarks made in Ramallah the previous day by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas when addressing 300 Israeli students who were visiting there. What he said was indicative of his desire to reach a peace agreement, said Peres.
Peres noted that Peru had been a member of the UNSCOP Commitee whose recommendations resulted in the November 1947 United Nations General Assembly vote and resolution on the partition of Palestine. “This is something we will never forget said Peres”. While Peru is 500 times the size of Israel, territory is becoming less important than science, Peres told Humala.
The Peruvian president concurred and said that science was one of the areas in which Peru wants to cooperate with Israel, and to become Israel’s most significant partner in Latin America.
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Published: 2/17/2014