Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Turkey blocked Israel and Cyprus from affiliating themselves with the International Agency for Renewable Energies (IRENA) during a voting session on new members in Abu Dhabi Tuesday.

The Anadolu agency reported that Turkey’s Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yildiz confirmed the move. Given that Turkey is a member of the agency, the country was able to oppose the adoption of Cyprus and Israel to membership in IRENA.

The organization was established in January 2009 and its charter is signed by 141 states. It claims to be the first organization on the intergovernmental level with the power to stimulate the development of renewable energy sources.

Israel has become a world leader in renewable energy innovation. It has set a goal to have 10 percent of its electricity generated by alternative means by 2020, an effort which was  given support by the government to the tune of $600 million in November 2010. Much of the money will be invested in green construction and development of new technologies.