Paraguay's newly-elected president, Santiago Peña, has declared the relocation of his country's embassy back to Jerusalem from Tel Aviv. This move is anticipated to be
completed by the year's end. The decision aligns with Peña's campaign promise, following the country's earlier shift to Tel Aviv under former president Mario Abdo Benítez.
Israel's foreign ministry has responded by announcing the reopening of its embassy in Asunción, the capital of Paraguay. Paraguay had initially moved its embassy to Jerusalem in 2018 during Horacio Cortes's presidency, only to reverse the decision under the leadership of Abdo Benítez.
The recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital has been a point of contention. While Israel maintains Jerusalem as its exclusive capital, the Palestinian Authority asserts its claim to East Jerusalem for a two-state solution. The relocation of the US embassy to Jerusalem in 2017, during Donald Trump's presidency, sparked international criticism over concerns for the two-state resolution prospects.
As part of these developments, Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen embarked on a visit to South America, marking the first such visit in over a decade. Cohen's meetings included discussions with Paraguay's officials and a visit to Uruguay, where he met Uruguayan President Luis Lacalle Pou and Foreign Minister Francisco Bustillo. Cohen took to Twitter to announce Uruguay's intention to establish a "branch of the Uruguayan Embassy" in Jerusalem, highlighting the nation's historic support for Israel's formation in 1948.
Presently, four other countries have their embassies in Jerusalem: the United States, Guatemala, Honduras, and Kosovo. Photo by Wayne McLean (Jgritz), Wikimedia commons.