Israeli PM Netanyahu and Guatemala President Morales. Photo courtesy of Haim Zach (GPO)
Israel is a world leader in water management and technology, but Guatemala wants to do more than just tap into Israel’s intellect or buy their equipment – they want to follow Israel’s example. “A few years ago there was a water deficit in this country and thanks to the right management of water you have exceeding water at the moment,” Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in comments published by Netanyahu’s office.
“So this only shows that when the people of Israel want to make great change it succeeds with efficiency. And this is an example we would like to follow.”
It has taken intentional investment by Israel to maintain their water supply in the Middle East. But from desalination facilities that make salt water usable to technological breakthroughs in agriculture, Israel has literally made the desert bloom.
“We just had the opportunity to speak briefly about the main concern,” Netanyahu recalled in comments with Morales. “I asked you: ‘What is the first thing you want to achieve?’ And you said: ‘I want to improve the water supply and the water system of my country.’ And I said: ‘You came to the right place.'”
Of course, water isn’t the only thing Israel can teach advancing nations—Netanyahu noted Israel is “eager to cooperate in the fields of water, agriculture, medicine, technology of every kind and many areas that I’m sure we’ll develop in the course of our conversation.” The press statement said that tourism and intelligence were also discussed between the leaders.
Israel and Guatemala have a lengthy history together—Netanyahu noted that Guatemala supported Israel around the time of the nation’s founding at the United Nations, and “in just about every town in Israel there is a Guatemala Street because we remember Guatemala’s friendship.”
But this meeting between Netanyahu and the visiting Morales in Jerusalem was not about the future more than anything. And Netanyahu believes the future can be bright. Said the Israeli leader, “Latin America has always been friendly to Israel but I think we’re at a position where these relationships can be far, far, far advanced.”
(By Joshua Spurlock, www.themideastupdate.com, November 29, 2016)