Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said Thursday that the visit of his Israeli counterpart, Benny Gantz, will enhance bilateral cooperation and dialogue between the two countries and facilitate the resolution of some outstanding issues, especially the Palestine issue.

This came in a joint press conference, held by the two ministers at the conclusion of their talks in Ankara, in the first visit of its kind in 10 years.

Akar noted that Gantz is the first Israeli defense minister to visit Turkey after a long break.

He added that the meetings held by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with both his Israeli counterpart and the Prime Minister of Israel marked an important turning point in the relations between the two countries.

And he added that "the development of relations and cooperation between Turkey and Israel, especially in the fields of defense, security and energy, will lead to important developments with regard to regional peace and stability."

He pointed out that Turkey and Israel have a great past and experience in the field of defense, defense industry and military security cooperation between them.

The Turkish minister expressed his hopes that his talks with the Israeli minister would contribute to strengthening relations between the two countries and bringing peace to the region.

MİLLÎ SAVUNMA BAKANI HULUSİ AKAR: (İsrail Savunma Bakanı'nın ziyareti) "Bu ziyaret dolayısıyla ilişkilerimizin daha da gelişeceğini, diyaloğumuzun artacağını, bazı çözüm yollarının bulunacağını ve bu ziyaretin çok önemli olduğunu ifade etmek istiyorum.”https://t.co/CT8NYbNnuc pic.twitter.com/tnFsWdC6K2

— TC Millî Savunma Bakanlığı (@tcsavunma) October 27, 2022

Israeli actions

For his part, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz said that he asked officials in his ministry to initiate procedures for resuming working relations with Turkey after a meeting with his Turkish counterpart in Ankara.

Gantz added that from now on, we must take a consistent and positive approach in our relations, and maintain an open dialogue.

He stressed that it is no secret that the relations of the two countries are facing challenges, but he stressed that there are great potentials for cooperation in trade, tourism, industry and more fields.

He referred to what he described as the success in removing a "worrying" number of threats against Israeli citizens and Jews in Turkey thanks to close and secret contact during the current year.

He thanked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Minister Akar and the security institutions involved in this vital cooperation, which contributed to saving lives.

He expressed his confidence that the two countries can work in a way that reduces the influence of those who destabilize the region by supporting terrorism or carrying out terrorist acts against innocent civilians, as he put it.

Gantz touched on developments in the Middle East and the eastern Mediterranean, stressing that Turkey, an ally of the United States of America, a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), plays an important role in ensuring global stability.

"While we maintain strong partnerships with our friends in Greece, Cyprus and the Gulf states, our relations with Turkey have also headed in a positive direction, and we can build bridges and reduce conflicts for the benefit of all parties involved," he added.

Relations between Israel and Turkey have been strained since 2011, when Ankara expelled the Israeli ambassador following the attack on the Mavi Marmara ship in 2010, which was transporting aid to Gaza, and Turkish citizens were killed on board.

Diplomatic relations were restored in 2016 and each country sent its ambassador to the other.

But two years later, Turkey recalled its diplomats from Israel and expelled the Israeli envoys when the Israeli occupation forces killed a number of Palestinians who participated in the "March of Return" demonstrations in the Gaza Strip.

Earlier this year, Israeli President Isaac Herzog visited Ankara in the first visit by an Israeli president to Turkey since 2008.