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St. George's, Grenada April 19th, 2009:
The leaders of Grenada and Chile have agreed to deepen diplomatic
relations between the two countries in an effort to improve south-south
cooperation.
At a meeting on Saturday night, Prime
Minister Tillman Thomas told the Chilean President, Michelle Bachelet,
the two countries have had a history of friendship dating back to the
1970’s. He pointed out that the South American country’s excellent programmes
in agriculture, agro-processing, diplomatic training and fishing as
three possible areas of cooperation.
“We will like to explore with your country
the areas in which we can mutually benefit from improving our
relationship,” the Prime Minister told the Chilean President.
The President confirmed the existence of a
diplomatic training academy in her country and agreed to look into the
possibility of making scholarships available to Grenada and other
Caribbean countries.
She told the delegation Grenada can benefit
from a one million US dollar housing programme funded by Chile but
administered by the Organization of American States (OAS). The President
suggested that her country is willing to assist Caribbean countries with
the teaching of Spanish given its importance to the tourism industry.
“Some things you can gain from us and some
we can learn from you. We do fulfill our promises. When we commit, we do
it,” she said.
The President applauded the Prime
Minister’s speech on global warming delivered to the lunch session of
the Summit on Saturday, saying, it was a “very, very concerning issue.”
The cordial meeting laid the foundation for
further contact between the two countries, with Foreign Minister Peter
David inviting the new Chilean Ambassador to Grenada to visit St.
George’s at his earliest convenience. |
