Turkey's Erdogan to meet Israel's Netanyahu next month: report

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is set to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu next month in a bid to improve relations between the two countries, Bloomberg reported on Friday citing Israeli sources.

The talks between the two may revolve around potentially exporting natural gas from a field off Gaza to Europe via Turkey, Bloomberg said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Sources added that the supply chain disruptions caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have pushed the two countries to further boost ties after a decade-long breakdown in relations.

Iran's activities in the region have also worried Turkey and Israel - especially Tehran's growing influence in Syria, the report added. Ankara and Tel Aviv also have shared interests over Azerbaijan, backing its territorial claims against Armenia and sending drones to help Baku.

Israeli media reported earlier this month that Netanyahu had been seeking to arrange an official visit to Turkey and a meeting with Erdogan, highlighting that there were communications in place to arrange the visit, which was likely to happen "in the coming weeks".

Israel and Turkey restored diplomatic relations last year and agreed to reopen embassies following years of tension after Israeli commandos stormed the Mavi Marmara ship in 2010, killing 9 Turkish citizens on board the ship.

The rupture continued until 2013, when then-US President Barack Obama pressured Netanyahu to apologise to Turkey and compensate the families of the Turkish victims who were killed in the operation.

On March 9, 2022, Israeli President Isaac Herzog made an official visit to Turkey, which was the first of its kind for a senior Israeli official in 14 years.

In 2021, Erdogan congratulated Herzog on his election as president, which marked a significant turning point in the course of Turkish-Israeli relations.