News / Politics

Rattled by Raeisi’s fruitful Africa tour, Israel sends FM to Kenya to boost ties

Monday, 17 July 2023 10:55 AM [ Last Update: Monday, 17 July 2023 11:12 AM ]

Israeli foreign minister Eli Cohen and German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock (not pictured) speak to reporters in Berlin, Germany, on February 28, 2023. (Photo by Reuters)

Disturbed by President Ebrahim Raesi’s fruitful Africa tour and Iran’s growing clout in the continent, Israel has sent its foreign minister Eli Cohen to the Kenyan Capital of Nairobi to meet with a number of African officials in order to strengthen relations with them.

Cohen’s office claimed in a statement that his visit was intended to boost ties with Africa amid “the Iranian attempt to expand its activities on the continent.”

Cohen, who was on an official trip to attend a biannual coordination meeting of the African Union, met with the leader of an unnamed African county that does not have diplomatic relations with Israel, on the sidelines of the midyear summit, Hebrew-language media reported on Monday.

The regime’s foreign ministry claimed that Israel engaged in “normalization contacts with several African countries including Niger, Mali, and Mauritania.”

The Israeli foreign minister also met with Kenyan Foreign Minister Alfred Mutua and other unnamed African diplomats and officials, his office said.

Cohen accused Iran of violation of its nuclear deal, claiming Kenya’s membership on the board of the [UN’s] International Atomic Energy Agency allows it to influence the so-called “international supervision of Iran.”

President Raeisi: Africa land of opportunities that shouldn’t be overlooked

Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi terms Africa as the land of opportunities whose potentials should not overlooked, calling for closer ties with African nations.

Last week, President Raeisi visited Kenya and Uganda and met with Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa who urged nations targeted by Western sanctions to band together.

The two presidents signed “a record” 12 agreements on topics ranging from energy to telecommunications, Mnangagwa said. These will help Zimbabwe access innovation and technology from Iran and envisage the creation of a tractor factory to support agricultural mechanization, he added.

The two countries also signed cooperation agreements for energy, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and telecommunications as well as research, science and technology projects.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kana’ani has described President Raeisi’s continental tour as “a new turning point” which could bolster economic and trade ties with African nations.

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