Foreign Minister says Turkey close to normalization of ties with IsraelFebruary 11, 2014 - 10:02 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey and Israel are close to normalization of bilateral relations since the Mavi Marmara incident, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said, according to Hurriyet Daily Daily. “There has recently been a momentum and new approach in compensation talks. We could say that most of the obstacles have been removed recently in these discussions,” Davutoğlu said in a televised interview. Stressing that there are “positive developments” in compensation talks and that “serious progress has been achieved,” he refrained from giving an exact date for a finalization of the process. Davutoğlu also avoided announcing the amount of compensation being discussed for the victims of the Mavi Marmara incident in 2010, but did say that the gap between what Turkey demanded and Israel offered had narrowed compared to May 2013. “These issues will be discussed with the families [of the Mavi Marmara victims] after the outcome [of the compensation talks] is clarified,” he said. As to Ankara’s another precondition for the normalization of ties, Davutoğlu mentioned easing of the embargo on Gaza and claimed that compensation talks and subsequent steps would be important to that end. Related links: Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Director General of Ucom takes part in recruiting conference Ralph Yirikian participated in the Recruit Days business and networking conference organized by Move2Career. Ameriabank named Best Bank in Armenia for 2024 by Global Finance Ameriabank has been named the Best Bank in Armenia by Global Finance magazine in its 31st annual awards. Armenia to participate in key EU meeting for the first time ever National Assembly speaker Alen Simonyan has said that Armenia will for the first time participate in the Conference. Lavrov rejects Armenia’s “defamation” of Russia, CSTO Lavrov decried the Armenian leaders’ “defamation” of Russian soldiers and border guards deployed in Armenia. |