DAR ES SALAAM, May 23 (Xinhua) -- The government of Tanzania said on Wednesday it supported the United Nations position on the need to have two different sovereign nations of Israel and Palestine that are free and secure.

"Tanzania believes that Israel has the right to live as a free and secure nation, the same applies to their neighbors Palestine," Augustine Mahiga, the east African nation's Minister for Foreign Affairs, told Parliament in the capital Dodoma.

Mahiga assured the House that Tanzania will continue participating in efforts aimed at bringing peace in the Middle East.

Bilateral ties between Israel and Tanzania which were severed for the past years were revived in 1995, but Israel was still conducting diplomatic services with Tanzania through its Nairobi mission in Kenya.

Recently, Tanzania and Israel signed an agreement to cooperate in defense and security issues together with sharing information to combat rising cases of crime, including terrorism.

The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two countries opened a new chapter in their diplomatic relations.

Israel ranks among the top 18 nations in the world on the UN's Human Development Index, which places it in the category of "Very Highly Developed"-- the highest ranked in the Middle East, allowing the country to enjoy a high standard of living rivaling other Western countries such as Austria, France and Finland.

The major economic sectors in Israel include high-technology and industrial manufacturing.