Turkey, Israel Mending Ties

Israel says it’s reached what it calls “understandings” with Turkey, to normalize ties.

The diplomatic breakthrough followed secret talks in Geneva on Wednesday between senior Israeli and Turkish officials. But they said the talks offered the most promising sign that Turkey and Israel were ready to put the politically charged incident behind them.

Turkish Parliament – and this is the third point – will approve a law to renounce any present and future legal claim against Israeli officials and soldiers connected with the Mavi Marmara incident. Turkey cut off diplomatic relations, demanding an apology, compensation for 9 Turks killed in the raid and an end to Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip, before it would consider repairing ties.

The daily quoted a “senior Israeli official” as saying that the two sides have not yet reached agreement on the Turkish demand that Israel lift its blockade on the Gaza Strip entirely.

At the meeting, the official said, negotiators agreed that Israel would establish a special fund to compensate families of the victims killed in the 2010 raid on the MV Mavi Marmara.

Moreover, work on a gas pipeline is scheduled to bring the product from Turkey to Europe through Israel.

The raid on the flotilla raised tensions between Israel and Turkey, which recalled its ambassador from Tel Aviv.

The first of these conditions was fulfilled in 2013 when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu apologized to then Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan for the attack.

Turkey regularly receives the chief of the Palestinian militant group Hamas Khaled Meshaal for public visits where he holds talks with the Turkish leadership.

Seeking to make up for drastically worsening ties with neighbours Iran and Russian Federation as well as bolstering its energy security, Turkey is moving to restore full relations with Israel after falling out more than five years ago.