Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (left) welcomes Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas (right) prior to their meeting during an official welcome ceremony at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, on Aug 23, 2022. (ADEM ALTAN / AFP)

ANKARA - Türkiye's normalization of ties with Israel will not reduce Ankara's support for the Palestinian cause, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday.

"The steps taken in our relations with Israel will in no way diminish our support for the Palestinian cause," Erdogan said at a joint press conference with visiting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the capital Ankara.

Last week, Türkiye and Israel announced that they would reappoint ambassadors, four years after they expelled each other's envoy when Israeli forces killed 60 Palestinians during their protests against the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem

"On the contrary, our Palestinian brothers also express that these steps will contribute to the solution of the Palestinian issue and the improvement of the situation of the Palestinian people," he said.

Abbas landed in Ankara on Monday for a three-day official visit. His visit came at a time when Türkiye and Israel decided to restore full diplomatic ties and reappoint ambassadors after a four-year hiatus.

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"Türkiye, which has recognized the Palestinian state from the moment it was proclaimed, defends the vision of a two-state solution on every platform," Erdogan noted.

He stressed that the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital on the basis of the 1967 borders and the United Nations parameters is essential for the peace and stability of the entire region.

"We do not accept any actions aimed at changing the status of Jerusalem and Masjid al-Aqsa (Al-Aqsa Mosque). We conveyed our sensitivity to our Israeli counterparts," Erdogan said.

For his part, Abbas said they had talked about the future ties between Türkiye and Palestine.

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"I would like to express my sincere thanks to President Erdogan for standing by the Palestinian people and for his unwavering stance," Abbas said.

Last week, Türkiye and Israel announced that they would reappoint ambassadors, four years after they expelled each other's envoy when Israeli forces killed 60 Palestinians during their protests against the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem.

Türkiye and Israel have been working to mend their ties in the past months, including Israeli President Isaac Herzog's visit to Türkiye in March, the first of its kind by a senior Israeli official since 2008, and their talks on pipelining natural gas from Israel to Europe via Türkiye.  

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