By Ahval
There are signs of a thaw in relations between Turkey and Israel, as both countries face a common enemy in Syria and are both casting an eye over gas reserves in the eastern Mediterranean, TRT World said.
Turkey-Israel relations deteriorated sharply in 2010 following Israel’s violent raid on the Turkish aid ship Mavi Marmara, in which 10 people were killed. The incident dealt a serious blow to their bilateral ties, leading to the recalling of diplomatic envoys on both sides.
Earlier this week, Israel was notable by its absence from a joint statement by Egypt, Southern Cyprus, France, Greece and the UAE that accused Turkey of engaging in “illegal-activities” in the eastern Mediterranean.
“We are only members of the Eastern Med Gas Forum, which is based in Cairo. That statement had two issues, one of them was Libya, whereas the saying goes, we have no dog in the fight,” an Israeli official said, cited by Middle East Eye.
“We have never discussed anything related to a maritime delimitation deal with Turkey, even in the heydays of bilateral relations in the 1990s, the reports are complete nonsense,” the Israeli official added.
The official said that Turkey and Israel have a common enemy in Hezbollah. “This is a common topic of interest, as well as energy,” the official said.
TRT World said the Israeli public seems to want a close relationship with Turkey – citing a 2019 survey in which 53 percent of Israelis were in favour of improved ties with Ankara, an increase of 11 percent compared to 2018.
