Colombia opens embassy in West Jerusalem as new president embraces Israel
Colombia opened its embassy in West Jerusalem on Wednesday, following a controversial decision by the country’s new pro-Israeli president, Abelardo de la Espriella.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar and his Colombian counterpart, Omar Bula Escobar, attended the inauguration. The move builds on decisions aimed at helping Israel emerge from its international isolation.
The Palestinian foreign ministry condemned the opening of the Colombian government’s embassy in the "occupied city of Jerusalem".
In a statement carried by Wafa, it said that it considers the move "a violation of international law and relevant United Nations resolutions, and an attack on the legitimate national rights of the Palestinian people.
"All measures and decisions aimed at changing the legal and historical status of occupied Jerusalem are null and void and have no legal effect," it added.
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At the opening ceremony Saar said: "In just two months, we have reversed most of the negative consequences of the Petro administration for Israel-Colombia relations and have even broken new ground... I thank... Abelardo de la Espriella for his determination to bring Israel-Colombia relations to an all-time high."
On Tuesday, Colombia reinstated a free trade agreement between the two countries suspended by the former President Gustavo Petro over Israel's Gaza genocide.
“Today, we are taking a concrete step towards restoring diplomatic relations between our countries, relations that should never have been broken,” Escobar said at the ceremony.
“Israel is a strategic partner. It always has been, and from now on, it will be an even stronger one," he added, according to Israel’s foreign ministry.
Petro, who was not able to stand for a second term under Colombia's constitution, fiercely opposed Israel’s war on Gaza, calling it a “crime against humanity”.
His government severed diplomatic relations with Israel in May 2024 and backed international legal efforts to hold Israeli officials accountable.
Since taking power in August, Espriella on the other hand has placed Israeli and US interests at the centre of his foreign policy agenda.
He recognised Israel's occupation and annexetion of the Syrian Golan Heights as well as recognising Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, a key Israeli ally in North Africa.
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