Chad President Idriss Deby landed at Ben Gurion Airport after noon today and left immediately for Jerusalem for a work meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
At the outset of the meeting, Netanyahu said that they had discussed changes in the Arab world concerning Israel. "I will make additional visits to Arab countries in the near future," Netanyahu said. The Israeli prime minister visited Oman last month. It is believed that another one of the Gulf states is involved.
Netanyahu added that he had traveled to Africa three times in two years. "I was in West Africa and in East Africa. I hope to also go to Central Africa and bring Israeli entrepreneurs and companies with me that can help improve life for people in Africa. Israel is returning to Africa, and Africa is returning to Israel."
Deby told Netanyahu that he was interested in renewing diplomatic relations with Israel, but added, "The Palestinian problem will not go away."
Deby's arrival in Israel was described as an official visit, but full diplomatic relations have not yet been restored. At today's cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said that he had met Deby in Paris 10 days ago on the outskirts of the great conference marking the 100 years since the end of WWI. "Chad is a large and important African country. Most of the population is Muslim; a president of Chad has never been in Israel. President Deby is coming to Israel as a result of many efforts I led in recent years, and this is also an opportunity to give special thanks to National Security Council head Meir Ben Shabbat and people in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who helped him."
Contact with Chad was first renewed two and a half years ago by then-Ministry of Foreign Affairs director general Dore Gold (now president of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs). Gold said today, "Chad is a very important country in Africa, with great importance as a positive and stabilizing force in the region." He added that Chad formerly had diplomatic relations with Israel, which were broken off in 1972. "When I asked the president's aides why they did this, they answered that it was due to strong pressure from Gadaffi. There is no Gadaffi now, so relations can make progress."
After the meeting in July 2016, a channel of communication between Israel and Chad existed through French businessperson Philippe Solomon, with mediation by former Israel Ambassador to OECD Carmel Shama-Hacohen.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on November 25, 2018
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