'Israel' establishes embassy in Turkmenistan, just 20km away from Iran

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
19 Apr 2023 16:56

The Israeli occupation's foreign minister visits Turkmenistan to establish an embassy, following a visit to Azerbaijan.

Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, then economy minister, in occupied Al-Quds in November 22, 2017. (Reuters)

The Israeli occupation entity will open on Wednesday an embassy in Turkmenistan's capital Ashgabat, just 20 km from the Iranian border, Israeli media reported earlier today.

Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen will arrive today in the Central Asian country to officially launch the mission after meeting the country's President Serdar Berdimuhamedow, in addition to other senior members of the government.

Cohen's trip marks the first visit of an Israeli senior official to Turkmenistan in almost three decades, where he will head to Asghabat from Azerbaijan's Baku after meeting President Ilham Aliyev.

“We see Azerbaijan as a strategic partner. Trade relations will certainly expand. I am here to fulfill this potential and further strengthen relations between the two countries. We will sign agreements on innovation, cyber security, and education,” Cohen said on Tuesday after arriving in Azerbaijan accompanied by a delegation of businessmen.

“My goal is to take the relationship to a higher level, and we are working on that. I am confident that we will see a lot of results from the upcoming business forum."

But an Israeli increase of official presence in Central Asia has raised alarms in Tehran over "Tel Aviv's" public statements that its main mission there is directed against Tehran.

Azeri embassy in 'Tel Aviv'

Earlier this month, Azerbaijan's Foreign Minister Jehan Bayramov traveled to "Israel" and inaugurated an embassy in "Tel Aviv" - a first since the establishment of relations between them in 1992.

Following a meeting between Cohen and Bayramov after the event, the Israeli Foreign Minister said, "Israel and Azerbaijan must work together to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear capability," adding, "I agreed with the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister to form a united front against Iran."

Iran responded then that Cohen's words are yet another documentation "of the malicious intentions of the Zionist entity to turn the territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan into a threat to Iran," and called on their neighbors to clarify the Israeli official's statement.

But despite clarification requests, Baku did not respond, but rather made new accusations against Iran with regards to Tehran's alleged security presence in Azerbaijan.

"By getting closer to Muslim countries, the criminal Zionist regime seeks to create disputes and divisions in the Islamic Ummah to achieve its expansionist goals," Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Nasser Kanaani said then.

"We advise Muslim brothers and sisters in Azerbaijan to be aware of the real intentions of the Zionist enemy," he added.

Tehran also emphasized that it has been working to "avoid deepening the gap between the two countries," and warned that "Iran will certainly not remain silent in face of the conspiracies of the Zionist entity against it from within Azerbaijani territory."

Israeli media outlet Haaretz reported last March that the occupation entity provided Azerbaijan with arms worth billions of dollars in exchange for "access to Iran" and oil, adding that Baku approved that the Israeli Mossad use its soil to spy on Iran.