Peruvian Ambassador to the Kingdom Eduardo Martinetti highlighted on Wednesday night the excellent friendly bilateral diplomatic relations between his country and Saudi Arabia.

“Peru and Saudi Arabia share many common stances on regional and global affairs,” the Peruvian envoy said during the iftar he hosted for 60 members of the media at the Riyadh Marriott Hotel.

He said that although Peru opened its embassy in the Saudi capital only in March 2013, the two countries had been enjoying multilateral ties and consultations through the United Nations for many years.

He added that Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques decided to open the Saudi Embassy in Lima, Peru, in September 2013 following the initiative of President Ollanta Humala to open the Peruvian Embassy in Riyadh.

Martinetti said that Peru began opening its diplomatic missions in Kuwait, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2010 to make the region more accessible.

He said that Peru has many attractions for visitors, opportunities for business and is an excellent spot to build economic ties with other countries in Latin America.

“Peru has made significant advances in social and development indicators, as well as in its macroeconomic performance,” he said, adding that it has enjoyed the highest GDP growth in the South America region for over a decade, in addition to stable exchange rates, low inflation and overall economic stability and security.

He said that the GDP annual average growth has averaged 5.6 percent over the last 14 years thanks to prudent macroeconomic policies, investor-friendly market policies and expansive trade liberalization strategies.

“In 2014, Peru is expected to remain the fastest growing economy with the lowest inflation in South America,” the Peruvian Ambassador remarked.

Peru’s main exports are gold, copper, zinc, lead, iron, fish meal, organic coffee, fruits, and vegetables as well as oil and natural gas.

Peru’s principal trading partners include the United States, China, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Argentina, Switzerland, South Korea, Japan, Canada, Germany, Spain, Mexico and Italy.

The Latin American country is attracting new and diversified investments from around the world, including interesting opportunities for the Gulf area, such as the development of ports and of gas and petrochemical installations.

Peru is located on the west central coast of South America, bordered by the Pacific Ocean. It is South America’s third largest country, spanning 1.3 million km.

Ambassador Martinetti pointed out that Peru has twelve sites already registered on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. The latest site was approved by UNESCO last June.