The Republic of Paraguay restored its embassy in Jerusalem on Thursday, resetting bilateral ties in high gear in a sign of support for Israel in Latin America.
The embassy move, which had been planned before the start of the war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, is a diplomatic boon for Israel at a time when it has faced consistent international opprobrium during the 14-month-old war triggered by the Hamas-led massacre of 1,200 people on Oct. 7, 2023.
“There is a basic sympathy between our people and the people of Paraguay … because you too were a small people, you too were beset by great powers, you too suffered the specter of annihilation,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told President Santiago Peña at the embassy opening ceremony located in a high-tech section of the city. “This desire to both to seize the future to create the benefits for humanity … is coupled with the understanding that we have a heritage and a commitment to our past and our future that transcends time.”
The Israeli leader noted that Paraguay’s decision to relocate its embassy was a recognition of the truth that Jerusalem has been Israel’s historic capital for 3,000 years.
“This is the correction of a historical distortion, and you recognize the truth here,” he said as the Latin American leader nodded in approval. “Jerusalem is and will always be the undivided capital of Israel, and it will never change. This is a fact and you recognize it, and we recognize the fact that you speak out and stand up for that because of the common values.”
“I am very happy that this is taking place at this very moment where a lot of people talk but not many act,” Peña said in English in his remarks. “For us, not only saying but doing is very important.”
“We were with you, we are with you, and we will stay with the people of Israel forever,” he added before the two leaders embraced.
Back and forth over embassy location
Paraguay first moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in 2018, following then-President Donald Trump’s lead and becoming the third country to do so after the United States and Guatemala.
However, months later, under a new Paraguayan government, the embassy was returned to Tel Aviv, which Peña said on Thursday was driven mostly by “internal revenge.”
The surprise decision led Israel to temporarily shutter its embassy in Asunción, citing the harm that the Paraguayan move had caused to bilateral relations.
During his election campaign last year, Peña had pledged to return the embassy to Jerusalem—making good on his word on Thursday in a decision he called a “privilege “to make.
Last September, Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana inaugurated Israel’s newly reopened embassy in Paraguay ahead of the South American country’s planned relocation of its embassy to Jerusalem later this year.
Other countries expected to follow suit
Landlocked Paraguay has a long history of friendship with Israel, dating back to its vote for the creation of the modern-day Jewish state at the United Nations in 1947.
Five other countries currently have their embassies in Israel’s capital: the United States, Guatemala, Honduras, Kosovo and Papua New Guinea.
All of the other countries that have ties with Israel maintain their embassies in Tel Aviv or in Tel Aviv suburbs due to the political sensitivities over the holy city.
The Palestinians—with the decades-old backing and encouragement of most of the international community—have sought to establish their capital in eastern Jerusalem.
Trump’s landmark decision to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem in May 2018 set the stage for other countries to follow suit, with additional nations now expected to make similar announcements after Trump returns to office next month and as the war in Gaza draws to a close.
