UPDATE - Improving Turkish-Israeli ties to strengthen regional stability: Top Israeli diplomat

ADDS BACKGROUND

ANKARA (AA) - Improving Turkish-Israeli relations will strengthen regional stability, the Israeli foreign minister said on Tuesday.

Yair Lapid’s remarks came during his visit to the Greek capital Athens, where he arrived on Tuesday for a tripartite meeting among foreign ministers of Israel, Greece, and the Greek Cypriot administration.

Referring to the "warming of relations" between Turkiye and Israel, Lapid said "it is a blessed chance whose time has come," according to a statement by Israel's Foreign Ministry.

“It also produces a great opportunity to deepen our ties and strengthen regional stability,” he also noted.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan earlier called the March 9 visit of his Israeli counterpart Isaac Herzog to the Turkish capital Ankara “a new turning point.”

Expressing his appreciation for Herzog's visit to Turkiye, Erdogan said strengthening the ties with Israel is of great importance for regional stability and peace as well as for the two countries.

He also underlined that Turkiye has the experience and capacity to implement big energy projects in the region, adding: “I expressed to Mr. President (Herzog) that we are ready to cooperate in projects to be carried out in the fields of energy and energy security. Recent developments in our region have once again demonstrated the importance of energy security.”

More recently, on April 1, Erdogan held a phone call with Herzog to discuss bilateral relations and regional issues.