DR Congo plans relocating embassy to Jerusalem, says ‘Israel’

‘Israel’ is moving ahead with plans to open a resident embassy in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, while the Congolese government prepares to relocate its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

The latest step came on Sunday, when ‘Israeli’ Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar approved the embassy’s opening and appointed Kobi Shoshani as ‘Israel’s’ resident ambassador to the DRC.

Shoshani, a career diplomat who previously served as consul general in Mumbai and in other posts, will head the new mission.

Once the Congolese embassy is moved, the DRC is expected to become the 11th country maintaining a diplomatic mission in Jerusalem.

The reciprocal arrangement builds on a joint declaration issued after Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi met ‘Israeli’ Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem on 1 September 2026.

The two governments said they would continue consultations “with a view to the opening of a resident embassy of the State of Israel in Kinshasa and the transfer of the embassy of the Democratic Republic of Congo from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.”

No firm timetable was given at the time, and the language remained carefully limited to further diplomatic discussions on implementation.

‘Israeli’ Foreign Minister Sa’ar struck a more assertive tone after meeting his Congolese counterpart, Thérèse Kayikwamba Wagner.

“Together with my colleague, the Foreign Minister of the DRC, we will advance the relocation of the DRC embassy to Jerusalem,” he said, adding that the process would proceed alongside the opening of an ‘Israeli’ embassy in Kinshasa.

He described the DRC as a strategically important African partner and friend of ‘Israel’.

‘Israel’s’ UN Ambassador Danny Danon also welcomed the move, writing that Tshisekedi had shared his “deep personal connection to Jerusalem” more than a decade earlier and was now “turning that vision into reality.”

The plan is not new.

It was first floated in September 2023 on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, when Netanyahu pledged to reopen an ‘Israeli’ embassy in Kinshasa and Tshisekedi indicated the Congolese mission would move to Jerusalem once that step was taken.

Progress has been slow; ‘Israel’ has until now operated only a non-resident ambassador based in Luanda, Angola, and an honorary consulate on the ground.

Relations were broken after the 1973 war and restored in the early 1980s, but a full resident ‘Israeli’ embassy has been absent for more than two decades.

For ‘Israel’, every additional embassy in Jerusalem is a diplomatic win in its long campaign for broader recognition of the city as its capital.

Most countries continue to keep their missions in or near Tel Aviv precisely because Jerusalem’s status remains deeply contested.

By joining the small group of countries that have relocated or pledged to relocate, the DRC is aligning itself with a position that challenges that consensus.

Critics note that the arrangement appears more symbolic than balanced.

The DRC already maintains an ambassador in ‘Israel’, while ‘Israel’ is only now establishing a resident presence.

Some Congolese observers have pointed out that Kinshasa’s own presidential communications about Tshisekedi’s visit initially avoided explicit mention of the embassy transfer, leaving the announcement to emerge more forcefully from the ‘Israeli’ side.

The move also comes as the DRC continues to face severe internal security and humanitarian challenges, raising questions about whether diplomatic reciprocity of this kind is the most pressing priority.