An ambassador to Israel is being appointed by the leader of the Democratic Republic of Congo after a two-decade gap, reported the Times of Israel.
President Felix Tshisekedi also announced at the AIPAC Policy Conference that he will be visiting Israel to deepen relations and advance bilateral cooperation and said he was inspired in part by his Christian faith, thanking US evangelicals for supporting Israel.
“After more than 20 years of inadequate representation, I will name an ambassador in the coming days,” he said, according to AFP.
Historic speech by H.E. President Félix Tshisekedi at #AIPAC2020 in Washington. #DRC will appoint ambassador to #Israel, open an office in #Jerusalem; @Presidence_RDC will make official visit & calls for "strong support" of @realDonaldTrump's peace plan. pic.twitter.com/LfL2vSf3q1
— J. Peter Pham (@DrJPPham) March 1, 2020
“I invite Israel to raise its diplomatic and economic presence in my country as high as relations can go between our two states and peoples,” said Tshisekedi, who took office last year after he won his country’s own elections in late 2018.
“This nation is a source of inspiration,” he continued. “It teaches us what man can do in such a short span of time when he has drive, resilience and, especially, divine grace and favor.”
Tshisekedi said the ambassador would be posted in Tel Aviv but that a commercial section would be based in Jerusalem — where the United States and Guatemala have already moved their embassies after the US recognized it as the capital of Israel in defiance of international law and United Nations resolutions.
"Je désire tisser avec Israël des liens forts et une alliance dans laquelle mon pays sera une bénédiction pour la nation d’Israël, selon la promesse de l’Eternel qui dit à Abraham dans Genèse 12:3 ; ‘’Je bénirai ceux qui te béniront’’., Félix TSHISEKEDI pic.twitter.com/bhkioOULtp
— UDPS INFOS (@infosudps) March 2, 2020
“The continent’s rapprochement with Israel is unfortunate, because, for decades, Africa has stood as a vanguard against all racist ideologies, including Zionism – the ideology behind Israel’s establishment on the ruins of Palestine,” wrote Palestinian journalist and editor of The Palestine Chronicle, Ramzy Baroud.
“If Africa succumbs to Israeli enticement and pressure to fully embrace the Zionist state, the Palestinian people would lose a treasured partner in their struggle for freedom and human rights,” Baroud added.
(Palestine Chronicle, MEMO, Social Media)
