Roundup: Turkey, Israel said to be close to finalizing deal on rapprochement

Turkish and Israeli negotiators have wrapped up yet another meeting on Thursday to normalize strained ties but the final deal still not hammered out after years-long on-and-off talks between the two sides.

Turkey's delegation, headed by Under Secretary Feridun Sinirlioglu of the Turkish Foreign Ministry, met overnight in London with Israeli negotiators led by Israeli Prime Minister's Special Envoy Joseph Ciechanover and acting chairman of the National Security Council General Jacob Nagel.

"The teams made progress towards finalizing the agreement and closing the gaps," Turkish foreign ministry said in a statement without elaborating on details.

It also noted that both sides agreed the deal will be finalized in the next meeting that will be convened very soon.

"The normalization of Turkish-Israeli relations would, without a doubt, foster better cooperation between the two countries in various fields and thus help construct mutual security," Selim Nasi, Turkish analyst, said.

"Though normalization has not yet materialized, both sides are positive about reaching an agreement soon," she added.

This is not the first time the Turkish side sounded upbeat in mending the fences with Israel yet no breakthrough has happened so far, preventing both sides from appointing ambassadors.

The Israeli ambassador was expelled from Ankara in September 2011 after Israel refused to apologize for the killings of 10 Turkish nationals during a raid by its commandos on a Gaza-bound humanitarian Turkish ship, the Mavi Marmara.

Israel formally apologized in 2013 for what it called operational mistakes, but Turkey insists full compensation for the victims and lifting of blockade on Gaza.

In December last year, negotiators reportedly reached an interim agreement to normalize ties, including the compensation deal and the return of ambassadors to both countries, in a meeting held in Switzerland.

"If our demands are received favorably, then the next steps will be clear," Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Thursday.

Ankara wants Israel to facilitate the access to Gaza so that it can help rebuild the infrastructure there including its electricity grid by connecting to a power-generating ship.

During his address in a U.S. think tank last week in Washington, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan repeated what he asked earlier on removing the embargo on Gaza and having Israel allowing Turkey to bring a power generator ship to the Gaza coast.

Erdogan also met with U.S. Jewish leaders, sending positive signals on rapprochement with Israel.

On the suicide bombing attack last month by a suspected Islamic State (IS) militant that killed three Israeli and one Iranian tourists in Istanbul, the Turkish president phoned Israeli counterpart Reuven Rivlin to express his condolences.

Turkish opposition is critical of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) government on policies with regard to Israel, accusing it of being cynical on its approach.

The opposition claims the Turkish government bashes on Israel to score domestic political points while secretly negotiating a deal behind the doors.

"What is the policy of government on Israel?" asked Erkan Akcay, the senior opposition lawmaker from the Nationalist Movement Party, in the Turkish parliament.

Recalling that Erdogan met with pro-Israel lobby groups during the U.S. visit, Akcay asked the government to be clear and honest on policies towards Israel.

The AKP lawmaker Orhan Atalay has recently claimed in parliament that the foreign attacks on Turkey is partly due to Ankara's strong position against Israel.

Aykut Erdogdu from the main opposition Republican Peoples' Party (CHP) emphasized that Turkey is dangerously excluded in world politics because of foreign policy choices that are not based on principle and consistency.

He said the government publicly challenges Israel but, behind doors, it pours millions of dollars to U.S. lobby firms to prove the AKP is pro-Israel party.

Despite the troubled political ties with Israel since 2010, the trade volume between the counties has increased by 24 percent since then, reaching 4.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2015.

In the January-February period this year, Turkish export to Israel have remained steady while imports from Israel has dropped by 10.4 percent. Endit