Latin American and Arab ties may be at an all-time high these days, after a series of joint efforts to promote bilateral cooperation between leaders.

Farid Kahhat, director of international studies at Catholic University of Peru and a prominent personality in South America, delivered a lecture in Riyadh regarding the new political developments between the Arab and Latin American countries.

“The relations between the Gulf and Latin American nations have become stronger during the last five years,” said the Peruvian expert.

He also visited Kuwait as part of his trip to the region.

According to Kahhat, King Faisal Foundation has expressed interest in setting up a research section on Latin American studies at the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies.

A large number of Saudi and Latin participants attended the lecture.

Highlighting some of the similarities between the two regions, he said: “There are 3,000 words in Spanish of Arabic origin. Moreover, there are also wooden balconies at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Lima, which are similar to what you could see in the houses and buildings in Jeddah or at the National Museum in Riyadh.”

Spain invaded South America more than 500 years ago and took its Arab culture to the region as well as its language, which has many words that stem from classical Arabic.

“The link between the Kingdom and other GCC countries with Latin America goes back to about half a millennium,” he said, adding that the bilateral trade between Brazil and the GCC countries alone, amounts to $10 billion annually.

He highlighted the investment of some GCC sovereign funds in South America, which helped recover losses caused by the economic crisis in Europe and the US.