Financiarul

Two new diplomatic missions, the honorary consulates of Peru and the Czech Republic, could be open in Timisoara (western Romania). Ambassadors of the two countries in Romania, Ernesto Pinto-Bazurco Rittler and Petr Dokladal, on Monday met with representatives of the Timis County Council of the Timisoara City Hall, with the prefect and the representatives of the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture, with the opening of the two missions having been among the issues discussed.

„There were made two specific proposals, the first being the setting up of a honorary consulate of Peru in Timisoara. The National day of Peru, July 28, could be the best occasion to open this new diplomatic office in Romania. The proposal came came as a stimulus towards the development of the relations between Romania ad Peru, in the multicultural region of Banat.

The Latin-American civilisation wants to be known in this part of Europe too. Therefore, it was proposed the setting up of a Latin American House in Timisoara, a kind of cultural centre, to be representative for the entire Latin American civilisation,” according to Constantin Ostaficiuc, the head of the Timis County Council. He proposed that the Museum of Art or the Museum of Banat to host an exhibition of Peruvian art and culture.

In Timisoara, there currently live dozens of Peruvians. The Ambassador of the Czech Republic in Romania Petr Dokladal has also proposed the establishment of a Honorary Consulate in Timisoara, especially with no less than 16 joint Romanian-Czech and 12 Czech companies operating here, although the Czech community number only around 500 people.

„The Czech businessmen are interested to invest in this county, in such areas as the infrastructure, energy, agriculture and processed food products. Therefore, an Honorary Consulate could help much in developing bilateral ties,” appreciated also the Vice President of the Timis County Council, Adam Craciunescu.
The new diplomatic missions to be opened in Timisoara would join the other similar offices opened here after 1990, those of Austria, France, Holland, India, Germany, France, Hungary and of Italy.

In 1922, the first consular agencies ever founded in Timisoara were the consular agencies of Italy and France, the Vice-Consulate of the UK and the consulates of Austria and Germany. Three years later, there was opened a consular office of the Czechoslovak Republic and also consular agencies of Belgium and Guatemala. In 1934, there was opened a Dutch, a Swedish and a Paraguayan consulate.

The World War II put an end to this development process of the city. Today, in Timisoara, there are functioning general consulates of Italy, of the Federal Republic of Germany and of Serbia, together with four honorary consulates of the Republic of Austria – the first opened in Romania after the first world conflagration, of Sweden, the Netherlands and Tunisia, all of them opened after 1999.