Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam leading trade mission to Israel

Gov. Bill Haslam speaks with guests in Maryville, Tenn., on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2015, during Denso Manufacturing's 25th anniversary of operating in Tennessee.
Gov. Bill Haslam speaks with guests in Maryville, Tenn., on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2015, during Denso Manufacturing's 25th anniversary of operating in Tennessee.

NASHVILLE -- Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam is headed on a trade mission to Israel on Saturday.

The Republican governor will be joined by five state economic development officials and 18 representatives from research institutions and the private sector in Tennessee.

State Department of Economic and Community Development spokesman Clint Brewer said the trip is aimed at fostering relationships between entrepreneurs and researchers in Tennessee and Israel. A major focus will be on the biomedical and high tech fields.

Brewer called Israel a "natural fit" for the governor's trip because the country attracts most venture capital investment per capita in the world. The governor returns to Tennessee on Thursday.

Haslam's most recent foreign trade mission was a weeklong trade trip to Japan and South Korea in June 2014.

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