Mucahit Aydemir
11 January 2023•Update: 12 January 2023
JERUSALEM
Türkiye's new ambassador to Tel Aviv presented his letter of credence to the Israeli president on Wednesday.
Ambassador Sakir Ozkan Torunlar was received by Isaac Herzog at a ceremony held at the Presidential Residence in West Jerusalem.
After the ceremony, in which the Turkish National Anthem was played, Torunlar presented his credentials to Herzog.
Speaking at a joint press conference with the Turkish envoy, Herzog said that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's invitation to him for a visit to the Turkish capital was the first important step taken in the rapprochement process between both countries.
Underlining that both he and President Erdogan welcome the advancement in relations between Türkiye and Israel, he said: "It is no secret that the State of Israel, and I personally, attach great importance to our historical relationship with Türkiye."
The Israeli president also noted that promoting ties in tourism, education, culture, energy, and other fields would bring prosperity to both countries and their region.
Invitation to Turkish president
Herzog invited his counterpart Erdogan to Israel during his address. "I wish (to take) this opportunity as the president of Israel to invite the Turkish president to Israel, which I am certain will contribute to the relations."
Touching on Türkiye's regional and international policy, Herzog said Türkiye's influence was visible particularly in its efforts to solve problems related to the Russia-Ukraine war, including recent prisoner swaps and a grain export deal.
For his part, Ambassador Torunlar said Türkiye-Israel relations had come a long way through recent bilateral visits, resulting in the appointment of ambassadors after more than four years.
"As our President (Erdogan) pointed out, it is our common goal to revive and develop political dialogue between our countries based on mutual interests and on the basis of observing each other's sensitivities," Torunlar said.
He emphasized that as the number of Türkiye-origin Jewish people living in Israel approaches 100,000, they constitute the strongest bridge between the two Mediterranean countries.
Torunlar also pointed out that Ankara, as the first country in the region to recognize Israel, was on the same page with Tel Aviv on the matter of counter-terrorism.
On the status of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem, Torunlar pointed to a statement by the Israeli government highlighting the preservation of its status quo after a provocative raid by far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir last week.
"I would like to take this opportunity to state that we appreciate the Israeli authorities' commitment to preserve the status quo of the holy places in Jerusalem, including the Harem-i Sharif (Masjid al-Aqsa)," he said.
"As you know, we immediately condemned the terrorist attacks against civilians in Israel last year. Our principled stance is unchanged. Likewise, we believe that Israel will stay away from attitudes that harm Türkiye's interests," he noted.
He pointed out that bilateral trade has increased rapidly in recent years and approached the threshold of $10 billion, saying that they aim to increase the bilateral trade volume to $15 billion in a short time.
Torunlar emphasized that the Turkish administration would work together with the new Israeli government under Benjamin Netanyahu's premiership in every field and try to advance the cooperation between the two countries.
Türkiye and Israel took several steps in 2022 to improve their mutual relations.
Herzog's visit to Ankara in March 2022 was followed by the visit of Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu to Israel in May. Then-prime minister of Israel, Yair Lapid, also visited Türkiye in June.
On Aug. 17, 2022, Türkiye and Israel agreed to restore full diplomatic relations and mutually appoint ambassadors.
*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat and Burak Dag
