Turkey has urged Kosovo to refrain from opening an embassy in Jerusalem, arguing that it undermines the historical and legal status of Jerusalem and the issue of Palestine and that it could jeopardize the process of other countries granting Kosovo recognition.

Turkey’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said it was clear from messages from the President, Prime Minister, Foreign Affairs Minister and other officials that Kosovo and Israel were planning mutual recognition and that Kosovo was planning to open an embassy in occupied Jerusalem.

The statement said that it was “disappointing” that Kosovo is considering this step, which it called a “grave violation of international law and United Nations resolutions.” It also reminded that Turkey was among the first to grant Kosovo recognition as an independent state, that it supported Kosovo on the international scene and that Turkey believes that such a process should not continue based on violations of international law and the suffering of the occupied Palestinian people.

Numerous United Nations decisions state that a solution to the Middle East crisis is possible only with the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on the borders set up in 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital, it said.

“We call on Kosovo’s leaders to respect those decisions and to avoid a step that undermines the legal and historical status of Jerusalem and could prove to be a future obstacle to the recognition of Kosovo by other countries,” the statement said.