Ashkenazi will depart on Tuesday morning on a German military plane.
By LAHAV HARKOVIsrael's new Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi(photo credit: MIRIAM ALSTER/FLASH90)
Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi is expected to meet his counterpart from the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed in Berlin on Tuesday, at the invitation of Germany Foreign Minister Heiko Maas.Ashkenazi will depart on Tuesday morning on a German military plane.The ministers will meet at the Holocaust Museum and will hold a ceremony at the Holocaust Memorial.Then, they will hold one-on-one and trilateral meetings to focus on visa issues, aviation arrangements and establishing embassies in each other's countries, as well as cooperation in fighting the coronavirus pandemic.The ministers are also expected to discuss "strategic security matters," Ashkenazi's spokesman said.Maas said "it is a great honor that the Israeli and Emirati Foreign Ministers have chosen Berlin as the location for their first meeting. The most important currency in diplomacy is trust, and I am personally grateful to both of my colleagues for placing this trust in Germany."The German Foreign Minister called the peace agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates "courageous" and "the first good news in the Middle East for a long time."Maas also called to "seize this opportunity" to bring about "new movement in the dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians," as well."I hope that Berlin offers a good framework to discuss further steps on this path," he stated.
