Israel has announced the opening of a new embassy and the reopening of an embassy in New Zealand and a consulate in Brazil. The new embassy will be opened in Turkmenistan.
The Israeli consulate in Brazil and the embassy in New Zealand were closed in 2002 due to funding problems. They will be reopened in the near future, ministry officials say.
According to a Foreign Ministry statement, the consulate in Sao Paolo will be a step towards developing closer ties with Brazil. Trade between Israel and Brazil has grown to $1.5 billion per year, the statement said, and El Al Israel Airlines has begun direct flights from Tel Aviv to Sao Paolo.
Shortly after taking office, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman outlined plans to reach out diplomatically to South America, Africa, central Asia, and countries elsewhere around the globe. Israel has focused almost exclusively on developing ties with North America and western Europe, and should diversify its relations, he explained.
The move to strengthen ties in South America and central Asia in particular is seen as a step towards fighting growing Iranian influence in those areas.
Lieberman to Discuss Iran in Belarus
In another new diplomatic move, Lieberman is planning a trip to Belarus next month, where he plans to meet with President Alexander Lukashenko. The two are expected to discuss Belarus ties with Iran and Syria.
No senior Israeli official has visited Belarus in over a decade. However, ties between the countries have slowly warmed recently, with increasing business connections and official delegations sent between the two.
Sources quoted in Maariv said Lieberman may offer to help Belarus create ties to the United States and western Europe in exchange for an agreement from Belarus to reduce its cooperation with Iran and Syria on military matters. U.S. diplomats are expected to oppose the initiative, they said.
The U.S. and the European Union have put sanctions on Belarus for its lack of political freedom and alleged human rights violations. The Belarus government has been accused of rigging elections, suppressing political opponents, and violating the rights of journalists and minorities.