Israel and Turkey to exchange ambassadors in diplomatic reset

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel and Turkey will restore full diplomatic relations and send ambassadors for the first time in years, the latest step in months of reconciliation between the two countries, the Israeli prime minister’s office said Wednesday.

The two once friendly countries had a feud of more than a decade, but earlier this year, Israel and Turkey began a process of rapprochement.

“The resumption of relations with (Turkey) is an important asset for regional stability and very important economic news for the citizens of Israel,” Israel’s acting Prime Minister Yair Lapid said.

Once-warm relations between Israel and Turkey disintegrated under Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has been an outspoken critic of Israel’s policies toward the Palestinians. Israel, in turn, has opposed Turkey’s embrace of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip.

The countries withdrew their respective ambassadors in 2010 after Israeli forces raided a Gaza-bound flotilla carrying humanitarian aid for Palestinians who broke an Israeli blockade. The incident resulted in the death of nine Turkish activists.

Following an attempt to repair ties, Turkey withdrew its ambassador in 2018 after the United States moved its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.

Israel captured East Jerusalem, along with the West Bank and Gaza Strip, in the 1967 Middle East War. It later annexed East Jerusalem, a move not recognized by most countries, which maintain their embassies in the coastal metropolis of Tel Aviv. Palestinians seek East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu confirmed the decision to reappoint ambassadors, saying that Ankara would send its ambassador to Tel Aviv. However, he said that Turkey would continue to support the Palestinians despite the normalization process with Israel.

“A process of dialogue with Israel was started after the new government took office,” Cavusoglu told reporters. “The appointment of ambassadors was one of the steps we said we would take to normalize relations.”

“We will continue to defend the rights of Palestine, Jerusalem and Gaza,” he added.

Turkey, beset by economic problems, has been trying to end its international isolation by normalizing ties with several Middle Eastern countries, including Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

Earlier this year, Lapid visited Ankara in June, a month after his His Turkish counterpart visited Jerusalem, the first high-level visit by a Turkish official in 15 years. In March, Israel’s figurehead president, Isaac Herzog, met Erdoğan in the Turkish capital.

“Improving relations will contribute to deepening ties between the two peoples, expanding economic, trade and cultural ties and strengthening regional stability,” Lapid’s office said in a statement.

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