Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has asked Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti to reconsider opening the Kosovo Embassy in Jerusalem, Israel.
"Since I know that you also have concerns about the issue of the Kosovo Embassy, the opening of which was announced to have taken place in Jerusalem, I think it would be useful for your government to review this issue within the framework of resolutions of the UN and international law", reads the congratulatory letter, which Erdogan sent to the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti on the occasion of his election to this position.
The opening of the Kosovo Embassy in Jerusalem derives from the Agreement of September 4, 2020, in Washington for economic normalization. The agreement, which was mediated by the then President of the United States, Donald Trump, included the recognition of Kosovo by Israel and it was said that the Embassy of Kosovo would be located in Jerusalem.
On February 1, Kosovo and Israel in a virtual ceremony, formalized the establishment of diplomatic relations. Kosovo officially opened its Embassy in Jerusalem on March 14.
The US State Department welcomed the establishment of diplomatic ties between Kosovo and Israel, calling the day historic.
Serbia had also undertaken to move its Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, but so far this has not happened.
Apart from Turkey, the European Union had also criticized the establishment of the Kosovo Embassy in Jerusalem, calling it a departure from EU positions, as according to the bloc, this is contrary to Pristina's official aspirations for EU integration.
The EU views the status of Jerusalem as an issue over which there is a disagreement between the state of Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
Since the United States decided to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in 2017 and based on this decision to move the embassy to Jerusalem, no state from the EU has followed such a step.