On Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan received the credentials of Israel’s new ambassador to Turkey, Irit Lillian, marking a historic day for the two nations as they endeavour to normalise ties after decades of strain.
Lillian, who had been Israel’s charge d’affaires in Ankara since January 2021, became the official ambassador after presenting her letter of credence to Erdoğan. Turkey’s ambassador to Israel, Sakir Ozkan, will present his credentials to Israeli President Isaac Herzog on 11 January, 2023.
A very emotional moment this afternoon as I presented my letter of credentials to the President of the republic of Türkiye, @RTErdogan.
— Irit Lillian (@iritlillian) December 27, 2022
Looking forward to many more positive developments in the bilateral relations 🇹🇷 🇮🇱 in the coming future. pic.twitter.com/IWtAJ3r91k
Ties completely broke down in 2018 after Turkey recalled its ambassador to Israel over ex-United States (US) President Donald Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. Israel reciprocated by recalling its ambassador.
However, in recent times, Erdoğan has expressed his interest in improving ties with Israel and has taken several steps in this regard. In 2020, the Turkish president said that his country would like to have better relations with Israel and the following year, he held a phone call with Herzog to realise this goal.
Furthermore, in November 2021, Turkey released an Israeli couple, arrested on espionage charges, on the intervention of Erdoğan. In March this year, Herzog met with Erdoğan in Ankara, the first time an Israeli head of state has visited Turkey in over 14 years, and agreed to normalise ties.
Ties were further strengthened when Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu visited Jerusalem in May.
Following a phone call in August, outgoing Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid and Erdoğan announced plans to restore full diplomatic ties and reinstate their ambassadors.
Additionally, Israeli Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu and Erdoğan have “agreed to work together to create a new era in relations between Turkey and Israel,” on a phone call after the former won elections last month.
Mazal Tov to @iritlillian, who has just formerly presented her credentials to @RTErdogan, as #Israel’s Ambassador to #Turkey. Turkey’s Amb to Israel, Sakir Ozkan will present his credentials to @Isaac_Herzog on Jan.11
— Arsen Ostrovsky (@Ostrov_A) December 27, 2022
I hope this begins a new, warm chapter in between 🇮🇱 🇹🇷 pic.twitter.com/qx4HHSTRk5
Relations between the two countries have remained tense since the 2010 Mavi Marmara incident, when Israeli commandos forcibly boarded a Turkish flotilla on its way to the Gaza Strip and killed ten Turkish activists. Additionally, Israel’s settlement policy in the West Bank and Turkey’s support for Hamas have acted as major roadblocks in re-establishing normal relations.
Nonetheless, despite the criticism Netanyahu is receiving for ushering in one of the most right-wing governments in Israel’s history, with key ministries under the control of hardliners, Erdoğan seems to be determined to continue championing the Palestinian cause while also maintaining fruitful relations with Israel in the future.