Romanian Foreign Minister, Titus Corlățean, is paying an official visit in Israel between 23rd and 26th of December. The schedule of the visit includes in-depth talks on the stage and prospects of the Romanian-Israeli bilateral relations with Avigdor Lieberman, Minister of Foreign Affairs. The head of Romanian diplomacy will be received by President Shimon Peres and will meet with the leadership and members of the Israeli Government: Uri Orbach, Minister for Senior Citizens, Yuval Steinitz, Minister of Strategic Affairs, Information and International Relations, and Tzipi Livni, Minister of Justice and Chief Negotiator in the dialogue with the Palestinian party.
On Monday, 23 December 2013, Foreign Minister Corlăţean met with the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the State of Israel, Avigdor Lieberman. The heads of the two diplomacies mentioned the excellent progress of the bilateral political-diplomatic dialogue, reiterating the special relationship created in the 65 years of uninterrupted bilateral relations.
The two Ministers assessed the measures discussed during previous rounds of political consultations and agreed to accelerate the demarches aimed at deepening the cooperation between the two ministries of Foreign Affairs. Both officials underscored the interest in organizing the next joint meeting of the Romanian and the Israel Cabinet, in Bucharest, in 2014.
At the same time, they reviewed the progress of sectorial cooperation in the economic field, in the areas of investment, research and development, energy and education. As far as the economic sector is concerned, they discussed about measures to support an increased presence of Romanian firms in Israel in the field of construction, energy infrastructure, oil and gas. Minister Avigdor Lieberman shared the assessment of his Romanian counterpart as to the benefits likely to be generated by the presence of Romanian experts in various fields, in the high-tech area in particular.
During the meeting the Romanian Foreign Minister asked the Israeli party to accelerate and increase the flexibility of the procedure of granting long-term visas to Romanian students and businesspeople interested in operating in Israel, a topic the Israeli party will approach in an open manner.
The agenda of the talks also included themes related to international dossiers, the two Foreign Ministers having an in-depth exchange of views, notably on the stage of negotiations in the framework of the Middle East Peace Process. The head of Romanian diplomacy underscored the importance of continuing the direct talks with a view to obtaining a solution accepted by both parties – the Israeli and the Palestinian parties.
Photo provided by the Romanian embassy
