Your Excellency, My Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen, I am very happy to welcome His Excellency Dr. Manuel Ulloa, together with Senora de Ulloa and his distinguished colleagues, at the beginning of what I hope will be an enjoyable and productive visit to London.
The relationship between Britain and Peru is an old and friendly one, dating back to the days when British volunteers fought side by side with Peruvians in their wars of liberation. During the nineteenth century British technology and expertise assisted in opening up the vast territory of Peru and in developing her abundant natural resources. We have to recognise that in the last eighty years our traditional links with and involvement in Peru (as indeed with other countries of Latin America) have become less substantial; and it was perhaps inevitable that in the process of change from being the centre of a great [end p1] Empire to our present active and committed membership of the European Community, our preoccupations should have been largely elsewhere. But that is no argument for allowing that situation to continue; and my Government are anxious to reverse the trend. There should be a natural understanding between us and we have much to offer each other. An essential element in this stronger relationship must be the development of closer personal contacts between the leadership of our two countries. It is against this background that I can reaffirm our great pleasure in welcoming Dr. Ulloa to London.
There are many dangerous areas of conflict and tension in the world today. The continuing Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, the Middle East situation, and the subversive activities of Cuba and the Soviet Union in [end p2] Central America and the Caribbean are all serious threats to world peace. Amid all these troubles, one encouraging trend in recent years has been the strengthening of democratic government in different parts of the world. Peru presents a shining example of this development. The impressive victory achieved by President Fernando Belaunde and the Accion Popular Party in last year's admirably conducted elections has given promise of stable, democratic government in the years to come: and is a source of encouragement to others.
Peru's return to the democratic path has also given impetus to our efforts to build a relationship of renewed vitality between our countries. We must now work to ensure that our closer relations are fully developed in all their aspects: whether political, cultural, commercial or economic. [end p3] In our discussions this morning, Dr. Ulloa and I have ranged widely over these fields. In the economic field, we share some similar problems; and I welcome the Peruvian Government's intentions to ensure the fullest possible participation of foreign capital and expertise in the development of the Peruvian economy and to encourage foreign investors.
What is needed now is an imaginative response from British industry to the opportunities for involvement in Peru's rapidly developing economy. Our position in the Latin American market has been allowed to fall away in recent years. But British businessmen are now paying increasing attention to this vigorously expanding area, where growth rates are among the highest in the world. In fact British exports to Peru doubled last year and there was also substantial growth in Peruvian exports to Britain. [end p4] Seated with us today are representatives of several leading British companies who are actively engaged in development projects in Peru. I hope that many more companies will soon be following their example. I know that Dr. Ulloa 's discussions during the next few days with my colleagues and with members of the business community will help to strengthen the relationship between our countries in all aspects and to give it practical and effective expression in the form of economic cooperation.