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59. Summary of a meeting between Foreign Minister Peres and Foreign
Minister Lehal of Mauritania, 12 June 1995.
While in Madrid, Foreign Minister Peres held a meeting, the first of its
kind, with his counterpart from the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, Ould
Lehal. The meeting was arranged by the Spanish Foreign Ministry. Israel
ascribed much importance to this contact with yet another Moslem nation,
the southern neighbor of Morocco. This meeting would eventually lead to
Israel-Mauritania ties. Text of the Foreign Ministry communique
follows:
Foreign Minister Shimon Peres today, Monday, 12.6.95, in Madrid, Spain met
for the first time with the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of
Mauritania, Ould Lehal. The meeting, the first of its kind, was
coordinated by the Spanish Foreign Ministry which also hosted the meeting.
Mauritania, whose official language is Arabic, is an Islamic nation, and a
member of the Arab League. The Mauritian FM expressed to FM Peres his
government's complete support for the peace process and its readiness to
offer every possible assistance in order to promote the peace process. FM
Lehal said that his country represents true Islam, and that it will always
support peace between Israel and the Arab and Islamic world. According to
him Islam is not opposed to peace, and there is no greater crime than
fighting in the name of Islam against the peace process. He emphasized his
country's support for peace and open dialogue with Israel and suggested -
as happened - that he and FM Peres appear before the local and
international press in order to make their meeting public. Regarding
relations between the two countries - contacts will continue in order to
determine the format and characteristics of relations.
Mauritania, which suffers from severe economic problems, has during the
past few years, undergone democratic and economic reforms. FM Lehal said
he was satisfied that his county will take part in the Amman Conference,
and to appear as one of the Maghreb Islamic nations supporting the peace
process without reservation.
During their meeting the two spoke about the possibilities of cooperation
in the field of agriculture, including sending Israeli experts, and
hosting Mauritians in agriculture courses in Israel. Trilateral
cooperation programs between Israel, Mauritania, and Spain were also
discussed. The Mauritian FM warmly accepted Israeli suggestions, and it
was decided to continue contacts between the two countries in order to
bring the ideas to fruition as programs.
Foreign Minister Peres also met with Spanish Prime Minister Felipe
Gonzalez. He and Gonzalez spoke at length about the Barcelona Conference
which will be held this November. Peres said that the Barcelona Conference
has a very important role in supporting the peace process and it is
important that the European Union designate the amount of aid to projects,
design a strategy, and put in place follow-up mechanisms to follow the
programs' implementations. Peres proposed that Spain take upon itself the
goal of bringing closer the three religions Judaism, Christianity, and
Islam.
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