Tunisia Rules out Normalising Relations with Israel

Tunisia’s Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi has ruled out normalising relations with Israel, saying his country has no interest in such a move.

Morocco last week became the fourth member of the Arab League to announce diplomatic ties with Israel in the past few months.

While on an official visit to France, Mr. Mechichi, in response to a question by journalists on whether Tunisia intended to follow in Morocco’s footsteps, said that “every country is free to make the choice it makes. It is not the choice Tunisia has made.”

Mechichi also denied that the Trump administration had put pressure on Tunisia, saying “I have not heard anything about the Trump administration pressuring us to follow in the footsteps of Morocco and the Emirates.”

US President Donald Trump announced last week that Morocco would normalise relations with Israel, and in exchange, his administration recognised Morocco’s sovereignty over the disputed territory of Western Sahara.