The Ambassador of the State of Israel to the Republic of Malta, H.E. Oren David, paid an official visit to the PAM HQs in Malta. H.E. David was welcomed by the PAM Secretary General, Amb. Sergio Piazzi, with whom a bilateral meeting followed.
Ambassadors David and Piazzi discussed at length priority topics and current issues related to the situation in the various regions of the Mediterranean. Amb. David underlined the excellent relations between the Israeli Parliament, the Knesset, and PAM, and recalled the active role that the former plays within the activities of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean and its Bureau.
The two also agreed to explore the possibility of organizing, in cooperation with the Palestinian Authority, a visit by a PAM high-level delegation to Ramallah and Jerusalem, as part of what Amb. David described the constructive and practical role of PAM in the Middle East Peace Process, both on its own initiative and in cooperation with the Secretary General of the United Nations. He also referred with satisfaction to the way PAM activated its parliamentary diplomacy tools during the Arab Spring in order to assist the transition in Tunisia, Libya and Egypt, and noted how PAM is currently following the crisis in Syria.
Amb. David also showed particular interest in the endeavours of the PAM Panel on External Trade and Investments in the Mediterranean, while Amb. Piazzi noted that the latest Parliamentary hearing held in Lisbon, within the Finance Group of the Panel, has contributed to a series of practical suggestions aimed at assisting in particular SMEs and the Energy sector, which are also important realities in Israel, as they are in all the PAM member states.
The Israeli Ambassador concluded his visit by expressing his compliments and full support to the Secretariat, which, through a pragmatic approach, during the last 5 years has established PAM as a role model for regional parliamentary organizations and also as an important actor in all those initiatives aimed at securing peace and stability in the Mediterranean.