Israeli Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom and Maltese Foreign Minister Michael Frendo have signed a bilateral cooperation agreement in the fields of health and medicine. The agreement encourages the exchange of information and experts for the purposes of consultation, the exchange of information about international congresses and conferences, the sharing of medical bibliographies and so on.

During the signing ceremony, Minister Shalom said he hopes the agreement will contribute to a deepening of relations and cooperation between the two countries, particularly in the economic field.

Health Minister Dan Naveh said the agreement shows that Israel is a leading country in the field of medicine and its capabilities are in demand by many other countries.

The Health Ministry is responsible for the implementation of such agreement and the signing of programmes which are more detailed than those included in the agreement signed today.

Minister Shalom commented on the Disengagement Plan at a joint press conference, by saying “If delaying the implementation of disengagement until after Tisha B’av makes things easier for the settlers and for carrying it out, this should be seriously considered. Anything that makes things easier for both sides should be seriously considered”.