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Last update - 16:44 07/11/2009
Turkey FM: Israel ties could improve with Syria talks
By Haaretz Service
Tags: Israel Turkey relations 

Turkey is ready to mediate a new stage of peace talks between Israel and Syria, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told French news agency AFP on Friday, adding he was confident that renewed talks with Syria could relieve recent tensions between his country and Israel.

"As soon as the path to peace opens again I'm sure that relations between Turkey and Israel will return at the same good level," Davutoglu told AFP in a joint press conference with French counterpart Bernard Kouchner.

The comment comes in the face of recent tensions between the two allies over Israel's Gaza offensive earlier in the year, prompting Turkey to ban Israel from a NATO air force drill last month.
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had said earlier in the month that he objected to Turkey resuming its role as mediator and does not see how the country can become "an honest broker" between the two sides.

Davutoglu, however, said it was ready to resume its role as a "honest broker," if it was asked to do so by both Israel and Syria.

"It's for the two sides to decide that. Turkey would like the talks to restart where they left off, or else within a framework decided upon by the parties," Davutoglu told AFP.

"We think that it will happen according to a calendar decided by the two sides," the Turkish foreign minister added.

Davutoglu personally took charge of five previous rounds of talks, acting as chairman of telephone conference calls between former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert and Syria's President Bashar Al-Assad.

The talks were stalled over "one or two words", Davutoglu said, refusing to go into detail over these obstacles.

The talks were suspended because of Israeli attacks on Palestinian targets in Gaza and since then, Olmert has been succeeded by his rival Benjamin Netanyahu, a right-winger who is seen as more hard-line.

"Turkey showed the whole world that it was sincere, honest and determined in its role as Middle East mediator. All the countries that seek peace are our strategic allies, including Israel of course," Davutoglu told AFP.

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