Lithuanian leader mulls moving embassy to Jerusalem

19 March 2019, 5:27 pm

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Lithuania’s center-right Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis says he will consider moving Lithuania’s embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, should he win May’s presidential elections.

Skvernelis says that moving the mission could lead to closer ties with Israel and the United States, which Lithuania sees as a key security buffer against Russia.

The embassy transfer “could bring new impetus for relations with Israel, both in the areas of security and trade,” Skvernelis tells reporters as he hits the presidential campaign trail to outline his foreign policy priorities.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) speaks with his Lithuanian counterpart Saulius Skvernelis in Vilnius, Lithuania, on August 23, 2018. (AFP/Petras Malukas)

“We would also send a signal that the United States is our partner not only in words but that we also side with it in bitter questions under discussions,” he adds.

— AFP