The Cook Islands and Peru formalized diplomatic relations last month through an exchange of diplomatic notes between the Cook Islands Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration (MFAI) and the Peruvian Embassy in Canberra.
Peru is the 3rd country from the Latin America continent to formalize diplomatic relations with the Cook Islands in the last 2 years – Brazil and Chile the other two....
Peru is a large resource-rich country bordering the Pacific Ocean with a population of 29 million people.
Over the past decade, Peru has been one of Latin America’s fastest-growing economies, with GDP growth driven by its minerals and fuels sector. It has also been a strong driver in the development of the Pacific Alliance, a trade liberalizing pact between Peru, Chile, Colombia and Mexico.
The Pacific Alliance countries are known as the “Pacific Pumas” for their economic growth and pro-free trade perspective. The Pacific Pumas countries are outward looking and influential in the region, with growing influence individually and as a collective in the multilateral context. As a group, it is home to 221 million people and the sixth largest economy with a combined Gross Domestic Product of $3.85trillion.
“Diplomatic relations with Peru avails yet another platform to advance the Cook Islands development agenda as relate to tourism, telecommunications, energy, people-to-people and cultural links,” said Foreign Secretary Tepaeru Herrmann.
It is likely the Peruvian Government will accredit their Ambassador in Australia to the Cook Islands. “Formalisation of diplomatic relations better enables our diplomats to engage with Peruvian officials through headquarters and overseas representatives on bilateral matters as well as in key multilateral settings in which both countries engage such as the IMO, UNESCO, the WHO and others,” said Herrmann
People to people links however go back many years. During the 1860’s more than 725 Cook Islanders, mostly from the Norther Group, were duped to board ships from Peru with bogus contracts to go and work in South America.
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Photo: Cook Islands delegation at COP20 held in Lima, Peru in 2014, including at far right current MFAI Director International Affairs Amelia Fukofuka
