Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar congratulated Paraguay’s new president Pedro Alliana on Saturday night as he took office, two days after the country’s Senate impeached President Santiago Peña. In a post on his X account, Sa’ar wrote that Israel is committed to continuing to strengthen the ties of friendship and cooperation between the countries. The new president responded to the foreign minister shortly after, declaring that the historic ties between Paraguay and Israel reinforce his commitment to continue working together based on shared values.
El Estado de Israel felicita al Presidente Pedro Alliana @AllianaPedro con motivo de su asunción a la Presidencia de la República del Paraguay.
Le deseamos el mayor de los éxitos en el ejercicio de sus funciones y reafirmamos nuestro firme compromiso de seguir fortaleciendo los históricos lazos de amistad, cooperación y asociación que unen a nuestros países.
🇵🇾🇮🇱— Gideon Sa’ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) November 7, 2026
In early October, while still serving as vice president, Alliana came to Israel at the government’s official invitation, marking three years since the October 7 massacre. During the visit he met with Sa’ar, and on October 8 was received in Jerusalem by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who thanked Paraguay for its support during the war. Before departing, the then-vice president said in a radio interview in Paraguay that he wanted to strengthen his country’s commitment to Israel and keep the embassy in Jerusalem.
During the visit, Alliana told The Jerusalem Post that “Paraguay is building a strategic alliance with Israel, where we share values and principles,” adding that his country supports Israel’s right to defend its territory. Asked about the price of standing with Israel, he replied that “there are, of course, political prices on many occasions,” but made clear that Paraguay won’t abandon its values even in moments of tension. He also noted that his country maintains significant intelligence cooperation with Israel and the United States, which helps curb Iran’s activity on the continent.
The leadership change in Asunción came following the collapse of Ueno Bank, which left millions of customers without access to their savings. Peña submitted his resignation on Thursday, but Congress didn’t accept it, and the next day all 44 senators present at the session voted to impeach him. Alliana was sworn in that same evening and will serve until the end of the term in August 2028. The new president is considered a loyalist of former President Horacio Cartes, who first moved Paraguay’s embassy to Jerusalem in 2018. Cartes’s successor reversed the move, and Peña returned the embassy to the city in December 2024.