Israel–Turkey relations

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan discussed the Israeli-Hamas war with Pope Francis on Thursday, telling the head of the Catholic Church that Israel's attacks on Gaza have "reached the level of a massacre" and that the international community's silence was a "shame for humanity."

The Turkish president attacked Israel and Netanyahu, saying: “The West may owe you a lot, but Turkey owes you nothing, the Israeli president abused our goodwill”

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday that Palestinian militant group Hamas is not a terrorist organization but a liberation group waging a battle to protect its land.

In a speech to his party's lawmakers in parliament, Erdogan said Israel had taken advantage of Turkey's good intentions and that he will not go to Israel as previously planned. [Reuters]

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has proposed an international peace process for resolving the Israel-Palestine question and has called on all the parties for an immediate ceasefire and the establishment of a humanitarian corridor into Gaza to heal the wounds of civilians who have been under attack by Israel since Oct. 7.

Israel's prime minister on Sunday floated the idea of building infrastructure projects such as a fiber optic cable linking countries in Asia and the Arabian Peninsula with Europe through Israel and Cyprus.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he's "quite confident" such an infrastructure "corridor" linking Asia to Europe through Israel and Cyprus is feasible.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu plan to meet next month in Ankara in an attempt to warm up their bilateral relations, according to reports. 

The Organization of Turkic States will play a strategic role in regional transportation, supply chain and energy security, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on March 16.

"Thanks to the southern gas corridor, the backbone of which is TANAP, Turkic states have become a key player in Europe's energy security," Erdoğan said at a gathering of the Organization of Turkic States.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Thursday during a session at the World Economic Forum gathering in Davos, Switzerland, that "we will not go to war with Turkey."

He said he still believes it's possible to resolve Greece's differences with Turkey by speaking with Turkey's president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken will visit Greece in the last week of February according to a report in Hellas Journal website on Saturday, quoting diplomatic sources in Washington.

According to the report, Blinken's visit is set for February 20-21 and the American secretary of state will take part in the Greece-US strategic dialogue.

Turkey's ambassador to Israel, Şakir Özkan Torunlar, presented his credentials to President Isaac Herzog on Jan. 11, the latest move in rebuilding ties after years of crisis between the two countries.