Israel inaugurates embassy in Rwanda

By Abdel Rauf Arnaut

JERUSALEM (AA) – Israel on Monday opened an embassy in Rwanda, its 11th diplomatic mission in Africa, according to the Israeli Foreign Ministry.

In a Monday statement, it said that Foreign Ministry Director-General Yuval Rotem had “inaugurated the Israeli embassy in Rwandan capital Kigali in a symbol of Israel’s return to Africa”.

The move, the statement added, “reflects Israel’s policy of returning to Africa, which was articulated three years ago by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after which he visited the continent on four separate occasions and established diplomatic relations with Chad and Guinea”.

The ministry went on to describe Ron Adam, Israel’s new ambassador to Rwanda, as a “veteran diplomat with a wide range of knowledge and experience”.

The new embassy, it added, “reflects the continued strengthening of relations between the two countries and will enable the expansion of cooperation in many fields, including education, women's empowerment, science and technology, innovation and agriculture”.

According to the ministry, Rwanda’s national air carrier is expected to begin offering direct flights to Israel “within coming months”.

In addition to Rwanda, Israel maintains diplomatic missions in 10 out of 54 African states, namely: Egypt, Senegal, Angola, Ghana, the Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya and Cameroon.