Israel, Honduras sign co-operation agreement

ANT KATZ

President Reuven Rivlin yesterday morning (Thursday) met at his residence with Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez Alvarado, who was currently visiting Israel. He was accompanied by his government’s Minister of Foreign Relations, Minister of Infrastructure and Energy, Minister of Defence and the Chief of Staff of the Honduran military.

President Rivlin warmly welcomed the Honduran president and the delegation and expressed his appreciation that the president had returned to Israel as head of state having been a participant in a Foreign Ministry Mashav volunteer programme in Israel in the past. President Rivlin said: “I want to welcome you and your wife on your arrival in Israel, together with your distinguished delegation.

RIGHT: The signing the Declarations of Intent  – PIC: Mark Neyman (GPO)

 “We are excited to host you here in Israel and in our capital city of Jerusalem. I am pleased to host a head of state who has himself participated in the Mashav programme of the Israeli Foreign Ministry, and has seen our daily lives in the country, which I am without doubt has impacted greatly your deep understanding of Israel.
“Meeting with those who have participated in the Mashav programme fills me with pride, in the knowledge that Israel is fulfilling its role among the nations.”

Rivlin’s spokesman, Jason Pearlman, told Jewish Report Online today that the president concluded by reiterating his appreciation of the Honduran president’s deep understanding of Israel, for his support for Israel in the international arena and for the ongoing co-operation between the countries.

“We appreciate your efforts, and welcome you warmly to our capital city,” said Rivlin.

President Hernandez thanked President Rivlin for his warm welcome and said: “It is an honour for me and my wife, and all the delegation to visit Israel. We bring a message from the people of Honduras to the people of Israel; we have supported you and will continue to support you, and your choices, as a state and as a people.”
The president of Honduras went on to state that the Mashav course in which he participated, and the knowledge which he gained from it, played a crucial part in his path toward a life of public service, and said that he hoped many more young people would be able to participate in such programmes.

He stressed that Israel’s wealth of experience in the field of water conservation and agriculture was of great importance, and added: “Our country, in Central America, in the past years has been especially impacted by climate change. We are here in order to benefit from your experience, and we hope to receive your support on this issue.”
He said he hoped to widen and deepen the co-operation between the two countries, saying: “The issue of water management in agriculture is among our highest priorities for our increasing co-operation, and I call on both the public and private sectors to invest in the agricultural areas across Honduras. We have the water, and we hope to learn from you how to manage it for effective irrigation.”

At the beginning of the meeting, Honduran Foreign Minister Arturo Corrales Alvarez, together with the Deputy Director General of Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and Head of Mashav, Ambassador Gil Haskel, signed a Declaration of Intent on development co-operation between the two countries with the assistance of the international development agency of the MFA, in the areas of water, agriculture, education, medicine, and regional security.