Jerusalem, 19 June, 2013
President Kagame today met with President Shimon Peres on the last day of his visit to Israel and said that Rwanda and Israel sharedboth a similar past experience as well as the determination to recover:
“Our past is loaded with tragedy. As you know, there is nothing we can do to change our past but we can do everything to shape the future.”
President Peres welcomed President Kagame to Israel and expressed his country’s interest in strengthening cooperation with Rwanda:“We are very thankful to you for coming. We would be delighted to work with your country and with your people.”
President Kagame also held talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during which they discussed further opportunities for partnerships in the sector of agriculture, energy and education.
Earlier today, President Kagame and Mrs Jeannette Kagame attended the Presidential Award ceremony held in honor of President Clinton at the Israel Presidential Conference.
In his acceptance speech, President Clinton spoke of the need to focus on our humanity rather than our differences. He described Rwanda’s story as inspirational and President Kagame’s leadership as exemplary:
“The people of Rwanda are an example that no matter what anyone has done to us or what we have done to each other, the first step is to get rid of anything that divides us including seeing ourselves as victims.”
President Clinton also said that despite the challenges that exist in an increasingly competitive world, the survival of humanity depends on an inclusive global identity that celebrates differences.
“There is no perfect answer, only the perfect obligation is to continue expanding the definition of us and shrink the definition of them.”