The two countries will try to “restart” relations in a “cautious, measured manner,” said Herzog.
“Restoring ties with the State of Israel, beginning with such a high-level visit, is a clear signal to other countries — mainly the US and Europe — that Turkey is now no more on the path of conflict of confrontation, but of dialoguing and making progress towards cooperation with all its neighbors and beyond,” comments Israel’s former Consul General in Istanbul, Moshe Kamhi.
Ehud Yarri, Israeli leading Mideast expert and commentator for Channel 12, says he has the feeling that Herzog’s visit ”was quite successful.” ”We are going to see an improvement in the relations between the two countries more rapid than expected.”
President Herzog and his wife Michal are meeting members of Turkey’s Jewish community at the Neve Shalom synagogue in Istanbul on Thursday.
“I believe that this historic visit will be a turning point in relations between Turkey and Israel. Strengthening relations with the State of Israel has great value for our country,” said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as he met Wednesday with visiting Israeli President Isaac Herzog at the presidential complex in Ankara.
Erdogan hailed Turkey-Israel relations as “important for regional stability and peace.”
“It is in our hands to contribute to the reestablishment of the culture of peace, tranquility and coexistence in our region,” he said. “As long as we can advance our bilateral cooperation and regional dialogue through a positive agenda, it will be easier for us to address the issues on which we differ.”
Herzog is the first Israeli head of state to visit Turkey since 2008, at Erdogan’s invitation. The visit is aimed at putting an end to long-strained bilateral ties and comes as both countries have sought mediating roles in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
Israel and Turkey relations have remained tense since the 2010 Mavi Marmara flotilla incident, which saw the death of Turkish activists aboard a ship attempting to breach the Israeli-Egyptian blockade of Gaza, and since another rupture in 2018 after the US moved its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.
Herzog thanked Erdogan for the “warm welcome” at the presidential complex, where the national anthems of both countries were sounded.
He said that he and the Turkish president exchanged views about events in Ukraine and in the Eastern Mediterranean.
“I believe that the coming period will bring new opportunities for both regional and bilateral cooperation,” the president added. “I hope that this important visit, taking place after so long, will provide an opening for future joint opportunities.”
Before boarding for Turkey, Herzog said at the airport that “Israel-Turkey relations are important for Israel, important for Turkey and important for the whole region. Certainly, at a time when the international order is being shaken, it is good and proper that stability and partnership be maintained in our region,” he said, adding that he had emphasized this during his visits to Greece and Cyprus in recent weeks.
“We will not agree on everything, and the relationship between Israel and Turkey has certainly known ups and downs and not-so-simple moments in recent years, but we shall try to restart our relations and build them in a measured and cautious manner, and with mutual respect between our states,” he said.
Herzog and Erdogan discussed various bilateral issues, including Israel-Turkey relations and the potential for expanding collaboration between their states and peoples in various fields, according to Herzog’s office.
They also discussed the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with the Turkish president emphasizing the preservation of the two-state solution and improving the social and economic conditions of Palestinians.
“Israel sees great importance in limiting Hamas terror activities that are orchestrated onto Turkish soil,”said Gallia Lindenstrauss, a senior research fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) in Tel Aviv.“We see logistical activity of Hamas, we see terror planning activities going on Turkish soil and in this respect, Israel wants to stop some of this military activity of Hamas on its territory.”
She noted that the Palestinian issue has been the elephant in the room concerning the Israel-Turkey relationship, with past flare-ups of violence typically delivering a crisis with Ankara.
Ehud Yarri, Israeli Mideast expert and leading commentator for Channel 12, said he has the feeling that Herzog’s visit ”was quite successful.” ”We are going to see an improvement in the relations between the two countries more rapid than expected.” He said that Hamas is scared that as part of this reconciliation, Erdogan will tell Hamas operatives based in Istanbul to go elswhere.”
Israel’s former Consul General in Istanbul, Moshe Kamhi, said that Turkey is in the process of reevaluating how it conducts international relations as part of a broader policy to improve regional relations.
“Restoring ties with the State of Israel, beginning with such a high-level visit, is a clear signal to other countries — mainly the US and Europe — that Turkey is now no more on the path of conflict of confrontation, but of dialoguing and making progress towards cooperation with all its neighbors and beyond,” he commented.
Lindenstrauss called the conflict in Ukraine a “game changer” for Israeli-Turkish relations.
“I don’t see how the two states can afford a crisis between them in the near future,” she said. “This war is really going to change many of our assumptions about the current international system and in this respect, I think Israel and Turkey will see more common ground in the future.”
President Herzog and his wife Michal are meeting members of Turkey’s Jewish community at the Neve Shalom synagogue in Istanbul on Thursday. Around 20,000 Jews live in Turkey.