Peter Lyukimson, Israel. Exclusively to Vestnik Kavkaza
The Foreign Minister of Turkey, Ahmet Davutoglu, said that Israel and Turkey found common grounds on the most issues and were ready to sign an agreement on normalization of relations.
Israeli observers note that in his speech Davutoglu chose his words carefully and tried to balance in order to smooth the shift from his recent anti-Israeli rhetoric to a friendly attitude. On the one hand, he stated that Turkey continued to insist on eliminating the blockade in all Palestinian territories (at the moment only Gaza is under blockade), but at the same time he stressed that Turkey appreciated the fact that Israel let in cargos to Gaza almost without hindrance.
The meeting between Israeli and Turkish diplomats in Ankara was very important, as it confirmed that it’s not long before the signing of an agreement between Israel and Turkey. To avoid interpretation of the meeting as official, its initiators were two research institutes which deal with international affairs problems – the Israeli Mittavim Institute and the Turkish Gpot. The main topic of the meeting was: “Israeli-Turkish Relations the Following Day after Signing the Agreement.”
The schedule of the work of the foreign ministries of both countries on reconstruction of cooperation in various spheres was defined. First of all, this concerns cooperation between Ankara and Jerusalem in the military/political sphere, which was heavily damaged.
However, the top news is that the former Foreign Minister of Turkey, Yashar Ikish, should visit Israel in two weeks. He is going to speak in the Knesset and participate in a special session of the Israeli parliament, which will be devoted to relations between the Jewish state and Turkey. Regarding Ikish as one of founders of the current ruling Turkish Party of Justice and Development who is involved in the closest team of Premier Erdogan, the visit could be very important. At the same time, the date of the visit means that the agreement won’t be signed earlier than mid-May, even though the sides have declared a countdown.
What can prevent the agreement? First of all, relations between Israel and Turkey could become tense again, if Gaza begins missile attacks on Israeli territories in the next few days. Israel would respond to the attacks, and it could cause a negative reaction from Ankara. However, at the moment diplomats of both countries are optimistic.
