Israel, Turkiye announce normalisation agreement, return of ambassadors

Israel and Turkiye announced the full normalisation of their relations on Wednesday, Anadolu Agency reports.

According to the report, the normalisation agreement was released by Israel’s Prime Minister, Yair Lapid’s office.

The agreement highlights the new appointments of the ambassadors and consuls to Tel Aviv and Ankara,  the report says.

“The renewal of relations with Turkiye is an important economic asset for the citizens of Israel. We will continue to act and strengthen Israel’s international status in the world,” Lapid said, according to the statement, after the conversation with Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

READ: Israel’s policies must be ‘sensitive’ towards Palestinians, Turkey says

Ankara, in turn, said that its decision to restore diplomatic relations with Israel did not mean that Turkiye would abandon its support for Palestinians.

“We are not giving up on the Palestinian cause,” Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, told reporters on Wednesday.

Relations between Turkiye and Israel deteriorated after the assault by Israeli commandos on the Turkish-registered Mavi Marmara in international waters in May 2010; nine Turkish citizens on board were killed and another died of his wounds later.

The ship was sailing towards the Gaza Strip as part of the Freedom Flotilla to break the Israeli-led siege of the Palestinian enclave. At the time, Ankara recalled its ambassador from Tel Aviv.