BICOM

Two senior Israeli officials will begin talks in Turkey’s capital Ankara today, in a first step towards restoring relations between the two countries.

Israel’s National Security Advisor Yaakov Amidror and former-Director General of the Foreign Ministry Joseph Ciechanover will discuss two main issues with a Turkish delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc, before returning to Israel this evening. The two sides are hoping to broker an agreement over financial compensation for families of the nine Turkish citizens who were killed whilst trying to prevent Israeli commandos taking over a Gaza-bound protest ship, the Mavi Marmara, in 2010. However, in return Israel will seek an end to all legal proceedings against Israeli soldiers and officers involved in the incident, a condition which the families themselves appear opposed to. The families and some Turkish leaders have also called for Israel to lift restrictions on movement in and out of Gaza, although the issue is not expected to be discussed.

The Mavi Marmara incident brought an abrupt end to diplomatic relations between Israel and Turkey after the two countries had previously enjoyed a close relationship, sharing trade and defence cooperation. Last month, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu paved the way for a rapprochement with Turkey by issuing an apology to Turkey over the Mavi Marmara incident. The United States is particularly keen for Israel and Turkey, both close allies, to restore ties, especially in light of the civil war in Syria.

US Secretary of State John Kerry yesterday urged Erdogan to postpone a planned visit to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, a move which would anger both Israel and the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority. Kerry said that such a visit would be a “distraction” to his attempts at kick-starting Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.