“Upgrading relations will contribute to the strengthening of ties between the two peoples, the expansion of economic, trade and cultural relations and the strengthening of regional stability,” the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement.
Israel and Turkey have decided to fully restore their diplomatic relations and the return of both ambassadors and consuls general to the two countries after the steady improvement of bilateral relations, the Prime Minister’s office announced today Yair Lapid.
“The upgrading of relations will contribute to the strengthening of ties between the two peoples, the expansion of economic, trade and cultural relations and the strengthening of regional stability“, is stated in the announcement of the Prime Minister’s office of Israel.
In Ankara, the Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu stated after the Israeli announcement that, despite the full restoration of Turkish-Israeli relations, Turkey “will not abandon the Palestinian cause”.
“We will continue to defend the rights of the Palestinians, Jerusalem and GazaMevlut Cavusoglu said during a press conference in Ankara.
“It is important that our messages (on the Palestinian cause) go directly through the ambassador“, added the Turkish Foreign Minister, indirectly confirming him imminent appointment of a Turkish ambassador in Tel Aviv.
After more than a decade of strained relations, Israel and Turkey have in recent months ushered in a new era in their relations marked by the historic visit of Israeli President Isaac Herzog to Ankara in March.
Mevlut Cavusoglu then made a visit to Jerusalem at the end of May as part of the rewarming of bilateral relations.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan who has promoted himself as a champion of the Palestinian cause, has been fierce critic of Israeli policy against the Palestinians.
Turkey maintains close relations with Hamas, which has controlled and ruled the Gaza Strip since 2007.
The deterioration of relations between Ankara and Tel Aviv began in 2010 with the case of the Mavi Marmara ship, when Israeli forces carried out a bloody raid on the Turkish ship that, carrying humanitarian aid, was heading to the Gaza Strip with the aim of breaking the Israeli blockade.
Turkey and Israel recalled their ambassadors to Tel Aviv and Ankara respectively in 2018 after Israeli forces killed 60 Palestinians during protests on the border between Gaza and Israeli territory against the Trump administration’s opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem.
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