Romania’s president travels to Israel and Palestine
Despite its excellent relations with the Palestinians, communist Romania refused to break off ties with Israel in 1967, maintaining its neutrality in the Middle East conflict.
Bogdan Matei, 11.03.2016, 13:31
Despite its excellent relations with the Palestinians, communist Romania refused to break off ties with Israel in 1967, maintaining its neutrality in the Middle East conflict. The country’s post-communist presidents also joined international peace efforts in the region, travelling there and meeting the leaders in Tel Aviv and Ramallah.
This week, Romania’s current president Klaus Iohannis also made a trip to the region for talks with Israeli and Palestinian senior officials. In Jerusalem, he told his Israeli counterpart Reuven Rivlin that the relationship with Israel was very important for Romania and that his visit marked the 68th anniversary of uninterrupted diplomatic ties, while looking ahead at the future of bilateral cooperation. He also said the two states had a very good dialogue on international issues and that there could be no compromise over Israel’s security.
On Thursday, Iohannis travelled to Ramallah to meet the president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas. He said political solutions and united efforts were needed to give more hope to the population in the areas faced with crises and conflicts.
Klaus Iohannis: “We believe the most important issue that needs to be addressed at this point is finding ways to restore confidence between the two sides. The legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people to live in safety and prosperity in a state of their own can only be realised by means of a peaceful process and solutions that are accepted by both sides.”
Iohannis also said that Romania wishes its institutions and businesses to take part in the reconstruction of Palestinian institutions and economy. Here’s what president Mahmous Abbas said: “We urge business people from the two sides to find together new ways to cooperate and carry out trade exchanges and investments in various fields. At this point, I would like to thank president [Iohannis] for the scholarships awarded by Romania to young Palestinians. Many of them studied in Romanian universities, something that has consolidated inter-human relations between the two countries and between Romanian and Palestinian families and communities. Having returned home, these young people have helped strengthen ties between the two countries and peoples.”
The Palestinian leader stood for a peaceful solution based on justice and truth, saying he was opposed to violence and extremism, regardless of their motivations.
