On 13 March, the two ministers held a working meeting at which they addressed the main issues affecting bilateral relations, which enjoy the status of a Strengthened Strategic Partnership, characterised by a high and fluid level of political-diplomatic dialogue and substantive development and diversification of the common agenda.
Within the framework of the Strengthened Strategic Partnership and in order to track the agreements signed by Peru and Spain, the minister agreed to hold the 6th Meeting of the Political Consultations Mechanism in Madrid in 2017.
Minister Luna highlighted the active role played by Spain as an Observer State of the Pacific Alliance and welcomed the joint work dynamic that Spain and the Member States of the Pacific Alliance have achieved on issues of talent mobility, research, development and innovation.
In recognition of the valuable support offered by Minister Dastis to achieve approval of the agreement on the exemption from the requirement for a Schengen visa for short-term stays for Peruvian citizens in the EU and his contribution to strengthening bilateral relations, Minister Luna presented him with "The Sun of Peru" award in the grade of Grand Cross. The two ministers expressed their satisfaction at the successful implementation of this agreement that on 15 March will have been in force for a year.
The ministers highlighted that Peru and Spain are important trading partners, and that Spain is the main country of origin of direct foreign investment in Peru. They also agreed that Peru continues to offer opportunities for Spanish investment in infrastructure, health and education and recognised the need to boost Peruvian investments in Spain. In this regard, the two parties expressed their interest in shortly coordinating positions to reinitiate negotiations on the Double Tax Treaty with the aim of strengthening economic and trade relations.
Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y de CooperaciónAs regards Peru's aspirations to become a full member of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) before July 2021, Minister Dastis expressed the support of the Government of Spain for this aspiration, valuing the role of Peru in the implementation of the Country Programme, as well as its efforts to reach the standards required by the OECD.
Minister Luna acknowledged the work of Spanish Cooperation in Peru and highlighted its importance in the fight against poverty and as an instrument to support its development policies. In particular, he underlined the importance of the participation of Spanish Cooperation through the Cooperation Fund for Water and Sanitation (Spanish acronym: FCAS) and its contribution to increasing the coverage of drinking water and sanitation services in rural areas of Peru.
Minister Dastis declared that he plans to travel to Cusco with the aim of inaugurating a drinking water project under the auspices of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (Spanish acronym: AECID) in Picotayoc and of visiting some of the historic heritage sites in the city of Cusco that have been restored by Spanish Cooperation.
The ministers expressed their satisfaction at the signing of an agreement whereby an office of the Inca Garcilaso Cultural Centre will be set up at the headquarters of the Cervantes Institute in Madrid, which will contribute to the to the spread and promotion of Peruvian culture in Spain and in other countries where the institute has offices. They also agreed to begin negotiations to update the 1971 Cultural Exchange Agreement.
The two ministers highlighted the excellent degree of integration of the Peruvian community in Spain and of the Spanish community in Peru, as well as their important contribution and entrepreneurship and agreed to enrich the mechanisms to provide care for their respective nationals.
Minister Dastis expressed his recognition to the Government of Peru over the recent legal reforms that have simplified the bureaucracy to apply prison benefits to foreign inmates, of which close to 40 inmates of Spanish nationality have already benefitted. Similarly, the deadline to resolve applications to transfer inmates to continue serving out their sentence in Spain within the framework of the agreement signed between the two countries has been speeded up. As a result of the wonderful collaboration achieved with the Government of Peru, there will be an historic flight to transfer 30 Spanish citizens in this position to Spain on 16 March.
Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y de Cooperación