July 14, 2011
San Antonio mayor boosts ties with Israel
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San Antonio mayor Julián Castro
The mayor of San Antonio, Texas, Julián Castro, signed agreements with Israel to share knowledge and economic cooperation.
On Thursday, the mayor was wrapping up a five-day trip to Israel focused on economic cooperation. Members of Castro’s delegation included private businessmen and the heads of San Antonio’s public utility corporations. During his visit, Castro signed two memoranda of understanding focusing on life-science and clean-tech projects.
On Castro’s agenda was the signing of an economic cooperation agreement with the mayor of Tel Aviv, Ron Huldai, including bilateral trade and exchanges in the fields of renewable energy, biotechnology, social and cultural affairs, and education.
“It has been a really productive trip to Israel,” Castro said. “We have learned that Israel and San Antonio have a lot in common. Both of our communities realize that we must focus our industries on the brainpower of our citizens. We both have strong commitments to the life-science and high-tech industries, and we both value the contributions that immigrations has made to our societies.”
The mayor’s trip is jointly hosted by the City of San Antonio, the Jewish Federation of San Antonio and Israel’s Foreign Ministry.
While in Israel, Castro also met with President Shimon Peres, visited the holy sites of Jerusalem, and met with Israeli business leaders and entrepreneurs.
