Permanent Secretary, Office of the Prime Minister, Immigration and Sugar Industry and Acting Permanent Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Mr Yogesh Karan received a courtesy call from Chargé d’Affaires a.i., Mr Ignacio Tapia Garcia of the Embassy of Spain, yesterday.
In congratulating Mr Garcia for his new diplomatic appointment, PS Karan said Fiji is confident that its relations with Spain will continue to strengthen in all areas of cooperation for the mutual benefit of two nations.
PS Karan thanked Spain for its cooperation in the areas of climate change, renewable energy and fisheries.
He also acknowledged Spain’s contribution to the European Development Fund (EDF) which has supported Fijian projects in many areas.
“There are a lot of opportunities to work together with Spain in addressing multilateral issues of mutual interest in our countries. Now, more than ever, we need all countries to strengthen their commitment to multilateralism.
In response, Mr Garcia said, “It was a fruitful meeting where we had the opportunity to exchange views on our shared interests, mainly climate change, the COVID19 pandemic, Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and multilateral organisations. We also identified new areas of engagement to explore in future.”
“Spain established a permanent office in Fiji six years ago and is now one of the only two EU member states with permanent representation in Suva.
“This reflects our commitment to Fiji and to the Pacific Region as well as our willingness to find new ways to strengthen our mutual relations,” Mr Garcia said.
He also commended the Fijian Government’s swift and effective response to contain COVID-19.
“We addressed opportunities for cooperation in new challenges such as vaccination and safe restart of international tourism.
“We share our commitment to multilateralism with Fiji and we work very closely with many international organisations, peacekeeping missions and global engagements. On this shared endeavour, Spain and Fiji are partners in the fight against climate change, climate action, in the promotion and protection of Human Rights, international peace, stability and many more aspects of our multilateral world.”
He said the meeting provided an opportunity to discuss potential initiatives encouraged by Spain at the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to facilitate a safe and organised restart of tourism, a field of the utmost importance for both Fiji and Spain.
Mr Garcia also congratulated Fiji for its assumption of the Presidency of the Human Rights Council (UNHRC).
