Turkish media said on Monday that official Ankara condemned Kosovo’s decision to open its embassy in Jerusalem, calling it an irresponsible and lawless step.

Daily Sabah quoted a Foreign Ministry statement that condemned “in the strongest terms” and expressed concern over the opening of the embassy on Sunday. Kosovo pledged to open its embassy to Israel in Jerusalem under the 2020 Washington Agreements. The Foreign Ministry statement was released just hours after the embassy was opened.

The Foreign Ministry “noted that the leaders of a country that suffered great pain have ignored the situation of the Palestinian people, who have been subjected to occupation and human rights violations for decades”, Sabah reported. “By acting in such a manner, Kosovar leaders have violated relevant UN resolutions regarding Jerusalem’s status, as well as the status quo under the scope of the peace process and have damaged the vision of a two-state solution and hopes for peace in the region,” the ministry statement is quoted as saying. It urged the authorities in Pristina to “use common sense and renounce its irresponsible and lawless step”.

The Anadolu news agency reported the Foreign Ministry as saying that Pristina’s decision was “extremely unfortunate”. It recalled that Turkey was one of the first countries to recognize Kosovo.

Daily Sabah recalled that Kosovo established diplomatic relations with Israel following that country’s agreements to normalize relations reached with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco. The Palestinians insist that East Jerusalem should be the capital of a Palestinian state.