Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced on Sunday that Samoa would open an embassy in Jerusalem in 2026.
“Just spoke with the Prime Minister of Samoa, La’auli Leuatea Schmidt. I thanked him for his moral decision to open an embassy in Jerusalem in 2026," Sa’ar wrote in a post on social media.
“I also expressed our appreciation for Samoa's consistent support for Israel in the multilateral arena. I invited the PM to visit Israel and we look forward to hosting him in Jerusalem very soon!" added Sa’ar.
JNS, which reported the impending embassy inauguration last week, said that Schmidt told local Christian leaders at a special prayer service for Israel that he instructed his Foreign Ministry to “start preparation to open an office of Samoa in Jerusalem this year."
By opening an embassy in Jerusalem, Samoa would join a host of countries that have opened representations in Israel’s capital, including the United States which did so in 2018 during President Donald Trump’s first term in office, Guatemala, Honduras, Kosovo, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay which opened its embassy in 2018, withdrew it and then reopened it in December 2024, and most recently Fiji.