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Kerry Urges Turkey and Israel to Restore Ties Kerry Urges Turkey and Israel to Restore Ties
(about 4 hours later)
ISTANBUL — Secretary of State John Kerry urged Turkey on Sunday to move ahead with its commitment to normalize relations with Israel. JERUSALEM — Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Israel on Sunday to explore ideas with Palestinian and Israeli officials on how to advance the stalled peace process.
It is crucial that the relationship, which is important to stability in the Middle East, “get back on track in its full measure,” Mr. Kerry said after meeting with Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. Mr. Kerry was scheduled to meet Sunday evening in Ramallah with Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority. On Monday and Tuesday, Mr. Kerry will consult with Israeli and Palestinian officials, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
President Obama brokered an agreement between Israel and Turkey to restore their ties during his visit to Jerusalem last month. Turkey and Israel’s diplomatic ties unraveled in 2010 after nine Turks were killed when the Israeli military intercepted a Turkish ship that was trying to run the blockade on supplies to Gaza. Israel was the second stop on Mr. Kerry’s six-nation trip in which he has plunged into Middle East diplomacy. Earlier on Sunday, Mr. Kerry met with Turkish officials and urged them to move ahead with their commitment to normalize relations with Israel.
But no sooner was the new agreement announced than Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan boasted that it underscored Turkey’s regional clout, leading to concerns that there could be problems fulfilling the deal. “We would like to see relationship get back on track in its full measure,” Mr. Kerry said after meeting with Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu of Turkey.
Several steps needed to be taken to restore relations, Mr. Kerry said, including a provision by Israel to provide compensation for the attack and the return of Turkish and Israeli ambassadors to their posts. Last month, President Obama brokered an agreement between Israel and Turkey to restore their ties during his visit to Jerusalem. The two countries had frozen diplomatic relations after nine civilians of Turkish descent were killed in 2010 when the Israeli military intercepted a Turkish ship that was trying to run the naval blockade to Gaza.
Mr. Kerry said that he had been assured by Mr. Davutoglu that the Turkish government would avoid any displays of “triumphalism” suggesting that it had forced Israel to make concessions. Billboards in Turkey show Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel and Mr. Erdogan of Turkey, touting Turkish “pride.” But no sooner was the new agreement announced than Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan boasted that it underscored Turkey’s regional clout, and concerns emerged that there could be problems fulfilling the agreement.
A group of Israeli diplomats, including senior advisers to Mr. Netanyahu, is expected to arrive in Ankara on April 11 for confidential discussions of the terms of the compensation Israel is expected to provide.
Several steps were needed to restore relations, Mr. Kerry said, including Israel’s provision of compensation, the return of Turkish and Israeli ambassadors to their posts and efforts to ensure that the “full relationship be embraced.”
Mr. Kerry said that he had been assured by Mr. Davutoglu that the Turkish government would avoid any displays of “triumphalism” suggesting that it had forced Israel to make concessions.
Billboards in Turkey show photos of Mr. Erdogan and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, touting Turkish “pride.”
“Now if one or two people, or a few people, break out and make comments, that should not cloud the overall benefit,” Mr. Kerry said.“Now if one or two people, or a few people, break out and make comments, that should not cloud the overall benefit,” Mr. Kerry said.
Mr. Davutoglu appeared to sketch more ambitious expectations of what would be needed to fully restore Israeli-Turkish relations, saying that it required the “lifting” of the Israeli embargo on supplies to Gaza. Mr. Davutoglu sketched out a more ambitious set expectations of what would be needed to fully restore Israeli-Turkish relations, citing several “preconditions,” including the lifting of the Israeli embargo on supplies to Gaza that he said should follow the settling of the compensation issue.
“There are commitments made regarding the issue of the lifting of the embargoes — improvement of the standard of living in the West Bank and Gaza, the entire Palestine, in a joint effort, and run a process on the lifting of the embargoes,” Mr. Davutoglu said. “The embargoes should be eliminated right after that in order to fulfill the mutual commitments. And in Israel, West Bank and in Gaza the living standards should be improved and all of the embargoes should be eliminated once and for all,” Mr. Davutoglu said.
Mr. Erdogan is scheduled to meet with President Obama next month in Washington. A Turkish official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of his diplomatic status, said that the embargo the Turks want lifted was on goods for civilian use and not military equipment.
As soon as there is progress on the issue of compensation and on lifting the embargo, the Turkish official said, “we would press the button to relocate our diplomats in Israel.”
Normalization of relations with Israel, however, is not Turkey’s top national security priority, according to some observers.
“The government is on the verge of making important steps in issues like the resolution of the Kurdish conflict and drafting a new constitution and does not want to weaken its public support,” said Ilter Turan, a professor of political science at Istanbul’s Bilgi University.
Mr. Turan said that he saw no signs that the normalization progress with Israel was at risk but that there was also a “lack of eagerness to restructure the relations.”
Mr. Erdogan is scheduled to meet with President Obama in Washington next month.
On Iran, Mr. Kerry indicated that the recent round of talks in Almaty on Iran’s nuclear program had been disappointing but said that the United States and other power would continues to pursue a diplomatic solutionOn Iran, Mr. Kerry indicated that the recent round of talks in Almaty on Iran’s nuclear program had been disappointing but said that the United States and other power would continues to pursue a diplomatic solution
“The door is still open to doing that,” Mr. Kerry said. “It is important to talk to try to find common ground.” “The door is still open to doing that,” Mr. Kerry said.

Sebnem Arsu contributed reporting.

Michael R. Gordon reported from Jerusalem, and Sebnem Arsu from Istanbul.