Israel has been wary of offending its allies in the region because of its decision to strengthen ties with Turkey.
Jerusalem:
Israel and Turkey announced the resumption of full diplomatic relations on Wednesday, after years of strained relations between the Mediterranean nations.
Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid hailed the diplomatic breakthrough as “an important asset for regional stability and very important economic news for the people of Israel”.
Lapid’s office said the diplomatic development would see ambassadors and consular generals visit the two countries again.
The announcement follows months of efforts to mend bilateral ties, with back-and-forth visits by top officials.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said the return of the ambassadors “is important for improving bilateral relations”.
However, he warned that closer ties with Israel should not be interpreted as Ankara’s “abandonment of the Palestinian cause”.
Cavusoglu in May became the first Turkish foreign minister to visit Israel in 15 years, in a trip that also saw him meet the Palestinian leader in the occupied West Bank.
During Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s landmark visit to Ankara two months earlier, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared their meeting marked “a turning point in our relations”.
Bilateral relations began to fracture in 2008, following an Israeli military operation in Gaza.
Relations then froze after the deaths of 10 civilians following an Israeli raid on the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara, part of a fleet attempting to breach the blockade by transporting aid. aid to Gaza in 2010.
A brief reconciliation lasted from 2016 to 2018, when ambassadors were withdrawn again because of the killing of Palestinians. More than 200 Gazans were shot dead by Israeli forces during border protests between 2018 and 2019.
‘Defend’ the rights of Palestinians
Public mediation was conducted after Herzog took office in July 2021.
Israel’s president on Wednesday said a complete renewal of relations “will encourage greater economic ties, mutual tourism and friendship between the peoples of Israel and Turkey”.
Despite diplomatic differences in recent years, trade continues and Turkey remains a popular destination for Israeli tourists.
However, Israel warned its citizens to return home in June, citing an Iranian assassination plot against its citizens in Istanbul.
Afterwards, Lapid thanked Ankara for its cooperation in this matter, and the Israelis quickly resumed their holiday in Turkey.
Israel has been wary of offending its allies in the region over its decision to strengthen ties with Turkey, with Herzog being sent to Cyprus and Greece ahead of a trip to Ankara.
Meanwhile, Turkey also wants to emphasize that normalizing relations with Israel can benefit the Palestinians.
“As we have always said, we will continue to defend the rights of the Palestinian people,” Cavusoglu said on Wednesday.
In addition to relations with the Palestinian leadership based in the West Bank, Turkey also maintains ties with the Islamist group Hamas that governs Gaza.
Efraim Inbar, president of the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security, said that observers should not be “under the illusion” that bilateral relations will be as good as they were in the 1990s.
“As long as Erdogan is in power, there will be a certain amount of hostility from Turkey towards Israel, because of his Muslim connections. He will continue to support Hamas,” he told AFP.
Israel has imposed a blockade on Gaza’s 2.3 million residents since 2007 and – along with many Western nations – designates Hamas as a terrorist organization.
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from an aggregated feed.)
