Flotilla fallout reportedly forced PM to cancel peace discussions.
By JPOST.COM STAFFTurkish FM 311(photo credit: Associated Press)
Indirect peace talks between Syria and Israel scheduled to occur in Washington last week were canceled as a consequence of the peace activists' attempt to break the Gaza blockade and the resulting violence, Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told news network CNN in an interview on Sunday.Davutoglu said that he was supposed to have met Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in Washington last week to facilitate discussions with Syria, a move which had been approved by Damascus.RELATED:Hello, Turkey?Assad: Iran supports Israel talksNetanyahu canceled his trip to Washington in response to the international furor generated by the violent encounter between the IDF and the activists on board the Mavi Marmara.Earlier in the morning, Turkey’s ambassador to the US, Namik Tan, threatened that Turkey would break off relations with Israel if the Netanyahu government did not apologize to Turkey for the flotilla raid, lift the Gaza blockade and agree to an international inquiry into the IDF conduct during the Mavi Marmara incident.Tan also expressed disappointment that the US did not condemn the Israeli commando operation.
