Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly denied that Hamas is a terrorist organization, calling Israel an "occupier."
Erdogan, who had warmed to Israel in recent years, has regularly met with leaders of Hamas, which is considered a terrorist organization.
Erdogan is intent on drawing closer to both Greece and Israel to ensure that Turkey is not disadvantaged by this thriving alliance, or perhaps to snatch an advantage by way of a bilateral deal.
Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in person for the first time on Tuesday at the United Nations.
Most Turkish media outlets seemed to breeze over Erdogan's historic meeting with Netanyahu.
“Our ties are growing stronger,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the start of their meeting.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has much to gain domestically by meeting Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who will be seen as willing to do anything to boost the economy.
Cyprus has been a bone of contention for a thousand years, and the division of the island, which occupies a strategic position in the Eastern Mediterranean, is an open sore that remains unhealed.
The Kremlin said “despite the current regional and global challenges, the leaders reaffirmed their common will to further develop Russian-Turkish relations.”
Russia is trying to redefine its status in the world amid its invasion of Ukraine.
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