Turkey: Ties with Israel Won’t Be Affected by Elections

“Whatever the election result, we want to maintain relations with Israel on a sustainable basis, based on mutual respect for sensitivities and common interests,” says the Turkish president.

By JNS

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Wednesday that his country’s rapprochement with Jerusalem would continue irrespective of the outcome of Israel’s national elections, Reuters reported.

“Whatever the election result, we want to maintain relations with Israel on a sustainable basis, based on mutual respect for sensitivities and common interests,” Erdoğan said, according to the report.

Israeli opposition leader and former premier Benjamin Netanyahu appears to be primed for a third stint in the Prime Minister’s Office following Tuesday’s elections.

Relations between Ankara and Jerusalem took a nosedive in the wake of the 2010 Mavi Marmara incident, in which nine Turkish nationals were killed during an attempt to break the naval blockade on the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

In August, Israel and Turkey announced the restoration of full diplomatic relations following a years-long rift.

The Israeli Foreign Ministry announced in September the appointment of Irit Lillian as ambassador to Turkey, the first person to hold the post since 2018, when Turkey expelled Israel’s envoy and withdrew its own ambassador amid fighting between the Israel Defense Forces and Palestinians along the Gaza border.

Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz met with Erdoğan in Ankara last Thursday, marking the first official visit by an Israeli defense minister to the country in more than a decade.