Turkish foreign minister to visit Israel
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu's visit to Israel May 24 could finally open the way for both countries to reinstate their ambassadors.
Israeli and Turkish representatives are both expected to participate May 10 at the spring meeting of the international donor group for Palestine (AHLC). But apart from the expected discussion this week in Brussels, Ankara has been wary recently of making public reference to the Palestinian issue. Rather, it is focusing considerable diplomatic efforts on rapprochement with Israel. Diplomats in Jerusalem told Al-Monitor they did not expect any skirmishes with Turkish colleagues in Brussels, despite ongoing Israeli-Palestinian tensions in Jerusalem and the Temple Mount.
Over the last year, Ankara had multiplied its efforts for rapprochement. Reluctant at first, Jerusalem is now certainly warming up to the idea. We have reported here last month on Israel no longer being silent over Turkey’s charm offensive. In fact, it seems that Israel has decided to play the game, and see how far Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will go.
On May 4, Turkey’s Daily Sabah published an article titled "Turkey-Israel rapprochement opens co-op doors in several areas."
The office of President Isaac Herzog published May 5 a list of heads of state who had congratulated Israel on its 74th Independence Day. The fourth name on that list — after US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron and Chinese President Xi Jinping — was Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan — before Indian President Ram Nath Kovind and German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
