Israeli PM to visit Nigeria after 61 years
- Nigerian government has extended an invitation to Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to attend the Democracy Day celebrations on June 12
- If Netanyahu honours the invitation, it will be historic as it has been 61 years since an Israeli prime minister came to Nigeria
- According to Israeli ambassador to Nigeria, Israel would also want President Buhari to visit in return
- The ambassador, however, did not say whether Netanyahu would honour the invitation
The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and President Reuvin Rivlin, are set to visit Nigeria after 61 years.
Leadership reports that ahead of the planned visit, the federal government has invited Netanyahu to attend Nigeria’s Democracy Day celebration on June 12.
Legit.ng gathered that if Netanyahu comes to Nigeria, it will be 61 years since an Israeli prime minister came to Nigeria as the last time was in 1958.
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The Israeli prime minister’s proposed visit was revealed in Abuja on Thursday, May 23, by the country’s ambassador to Nigeria, Shimon Ben-Shosan.
Ben-Shosan said that Israel would also want President Muhammadu Buhari to visit his country in return because the visit by the two leaders would be “historic.”
It was gathered that the envoy spoke at the presidential villa, Abuja, when he presented his Letters of Credence to Buhari.
The ambassador did not say whether Netanyahu would honour the invitation, but he spoke of the enduring bilateral relations between Nigeria and Israel.
Ben-Shosan said: ‘‘Next year will be 60 years of diplomatic relations between Nigeria and Israel, and the last time a prime minister of Israel visited Nigeria was in 1958. My dream is to bring my prime minister and president to visit Nigeria and for President Buhari to visit Israel. That will be historic for us."
Meanwhile, Legit.ng had previously reported that President Muhammadu Buhari congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on their election victory.
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It was reported that a statement by Femi Adesina, the president’s special adviser on media and publicity, in Abuja on Thursday, May 23, quoted President Buhari as describing India as Nigeria’s largest trading partner and expressed appreciation over the mutually beneficial Nigeria-India relationship.
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Source: Legit.ng
