Cairo – The relations between Arab and South American countries were discussed at the 132nd session of the Council of Arab Foreign Ministers, which ended last Thursday (10th) at the headquarters of the League of Arab States, in Cairo. “Cooperation between Arab and South American countries is progressing towards greater development. This may be perceived on every level,” stated the joint secretary general of the League for political affairs, Ahmed BenHelli, at the end of the meeting.
“We should have a meeting of Arab and South American foreign ministers in New York, on the sidelines of the General Assembly of the United Nations, as proposed by Brazil,” declared BenHelli. According to him, during the meeting, the two blocs should evaluate their cooperation efforts and seek ways to strengthen them further and further. “During the meeting, the foreign ministers should also coordinate their positions regarding the various issues tackled by the UN’s General Assembly and seek support to the causes championed by countries in each group,” he added.
According to him, greater coordination in matters of international politics has become a priority for the two groups, especially on the Arab side. “Another priority for the two groups is to even further increase economic and trade exchange, which is already satisfactory, but which the Arabs believe may increase much more,” said BenHelli.
The joint secretary general claimed, for instance, that the volume of trade between Arabs and South Americans is now almost twice as large as transactions between the Arab world and Russia, a traditional partner with the region. “This is certainly a consequence of closer ties between the two blocs,” he said.
According to the director of the Department for Latin America at the League of Arab States, Ibrahim Mohieldin, Arab countries hope to consolidate the relations between the two regions on every level. “I believe that it will happen when our relations surpass the purely governmental aspect and establish themselves for good on the level of civil society. Hence the crucial importance of joint work and communication between social institutions,” said Mohieldin.
In that respect, BenHelli explained that another priority of the Arab countries is to have immigrants and descendents of Arab origin in South America act as bridges for cooperation between the two regions. “For that reason, we are preparing a meeting, to take place in 2010, of Arab ministers dedicated solely to dealing with expatriates worldwide. The meeting should be attended by representatives of Arab communities in all of the South American countries,” he stated.
At the meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers, the main issues approached were the Israeli government’s approval for the construction of new Israeli settlements in the West Bank, the recent problems between Iraq and Syria, and the situation in Sudan.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
