Turkey-Israel love affair

A Turkish warship has docked in Israel for the first such visit in more than a decade as relations between the allies of United States improve following fierce feuding over the Palestinian cause.

The frigate Kemalreis docked in Haifa on Saturday as part of NATO manoeuvres in the Mediterranean Sea, a Turkish official said. An Israeli official said Ankara had submitted a preliminary request for the crew to disembark on shore leave.

A Haifa port official said it was the first time a Turkish naval vessel had visited since at least 2010, when bilateral ties were shattered by Israel's storming of a pro-Palestinian aid convoy that tried to breach its blockade of the Gaza Strip, ten Turks were killed by Israeli marines in that incident.

For its part, Israel has voiced objections at NATO-member Turkey's hosting of members of Hamas, a Palestinian Islamist movement that is proscribed as a terrorist group in the West.

But the countries have moved to mend their relationship in recent months, with energy emerging as a key area for potential cooperation. They are expected to appoint new ambassadors soon.

It may be recalled that the Israeli charge d'affaires in Turkey had talked the re-appointment of an ambassador to Ankara, while repeating Israel's expectation that the Hamas office in Istanbul should be closed down.

In a roundtable meeting with journalists, Israel's current top representative in Ankara Irit Lillian said the process of re-appointing an ambassador to Turkey was only a matter of "when and not if."

"It's only because of elections in Israel that things might be delayed on the Israeli side but I hope it will be on time and it will be just a few more weeks and the process will be over," Lillian said, Israel will hold a general election on November 01, 2022.

Earlier, Turkey and Israel had agreed to re-appoint respective ambassadors more than four years after they were called back, marking another milestone after months of improved relations.

The two regional powers had expelled ambassadors in 2018 over the killing of 60 Palestinians by Israeli forces during protests on the Gaza border against the opening of the US Embassy in Jerusalem.

But they have been working to mend long-strained ties with energy emerging as a key area for potential cooperation.

Lillian reiterated the challenges to the ties, saying that the biggest obstacle to the "positive tendency seen throughout the year" was the existence of a Hamas office in Istanbul.

"There are plenty of challenges, but from our point of view, one of the main obstacles is the Hamas office in Istanbul," she said.

"Hamas is a terrorist organization, and it is no secret that Israel expects Turkey to close this office and send the activists there away from here," Lillian added.

A visit to Turkey by Israeli President Isaac Herzog in March, followed by visits by both foreign ministers, helped warm relations after more than a decade of tensions.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid held a phone call recently, expressing their satisfaction with the progress in ties and congratulated each other on the decision to appoint ambassadors.

Erdogan said necessary steps to appoint the ambassador would be taken as soon as possible, while Lapid said the strengthening ties would lead to achievements in commerce and tourism.