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Jerusalem, 10 January 1995
MIDDLE EAST REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT BANK
(Communicated by the Foreign Ministry spokesman)
At the invitation of President Clinton, delegations from 27 countries and
international organizations will convene next week in Washington to
discuss the creation of a Regional Bank in the Middle East. The Israeli
delegation will be headed by Foreign Ministry Director-General Uri Savir
and Finance Ministry Director-General David Brodet. For the first time,
the delegation will also participate in a joint Egyptian-Jordanian-
Palestinian forum.
The multilateral sub-group dealing with finance has formulated a unanimous
position to be presented separately, as a common Middle Eastern
economic interest in support of establishing a Regional Bank for the
Development of the Middle East. The United States and Japan have also
given their support to the plan, although a number of European states have
expressed their reservations (as well as stating their preference for
existing bodies such as the World Bank).
In recent years, Israel and a number of other states in the region have
advocated the creation of a Regional Bank which could support
cross-border, infrastructure projects acting both within the public and
private sectors. The Bank will also serve as a forum for the formulation
of regional trade and investment policy.
Also convening in Washington will be the Steering Committee for the
Economic Conference in Amman, planned as a follow-up to the Casablanca
Conference. There will also be an unofficial meeting of the donor
countries.
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