Israeli Foreign Minister Gidon Sa’ar on Wednesday hosted in Jerusalem senior diplomats from Japan and Equatorial Guinea, underscoring Israel’s diplomatic outreach in both Asia and Africa amid the ongoing Gaza war.
Sa’ar first hosted Japanese Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs Matsumoto Hisashi, praising the two countries’ long-standing friendship and strategic cooperation. Posting on X, he expressed appreciation in both Hebrew and Japanese, saying, “I am grateful for the long-standing friendship between Israel and Japan.”
In the same post, Sa’ar criticized recent announcements by some governments of their intention to recognize a “virtual Palestinian state,” as he termed it, calling the moves a reward for Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023 massacre and a blow to the chances of securing a hostage release and ceasefire.
Asked on Friday, August 8, about the possibility of Japan following France, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia on this issue, Japanese government spokesperson Yoshimasa Hayashi remained noncommittal, saying: “We are conducting a thorough review of both the timing and the appropriate method in order to support progress toward peace.”
Also on Wednesday, Sa’ar met with Equatorial Guinea’s Foreign Minister Simeón Oyono Esono Angue. In posting about that meeting, Sa’ar noted that while Israel is enabling large amounts of humanitarian aid to enter Gaza, some countries continue to use hostile rhetoric against Israel.
“The rhetoric against Israel by countries seeking to hurt it has not changed. There are major humanitarian disasters in Africa, for example, yet you won’t hear a word from these countries!” Sa’ar wrote.
Sa’ar also said that Israel and Equatorial Guinea would work to strengthen ties between Israel and African nations, and he looked forward to returning the minister’s visit.
