Netanyahu: Erdogan calls me “Hitler”, but trade between Turkey and Israel is thriving!”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday, Wednesday, that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is called “Hitler”, but the trade between the two countries is constantly increasing.
Netanyahu said: “Among the positions taken by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan towards me in public, while those positions differ in the field of trade relations between their two countries,” According to a newspaper Jerusalem Post.
The Israeli prime minister said, during a meeting with the Likud party, that he might be “the only Israeli who does not travel to Turkey.”
Netanyahu noted that President Erdogan “used to call him Hitler every 3 hours … and now he does it every 6 hours, but thank God that trade between Turkey and Israel is thriving!”
Diplomatic relations between Israel and Turkey have been strained since 2009, after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took tough stances against Israeli policies toward the Palestinians.
The trade exchange between Turkey and Israel is an average of 6 billion dollars a year, and has increased in the last five years despite political tension.
Dr. Gila Linden Strauss, Senior Researcher at the Institute for National Security Research of the “INSS”, said, “In Israel’s trade relations with Turkey, it has not been affected by the years of Erdogan’s rule, which reached its climax in recent years.” Dr. Gilla added “we are talking here about 6 billion dollars for mutual trade, including 4 billion Dollars exports from Turkey to Israel.
The trade movement between the two countries witnessed a procedural boost, with the arrival of a new Turkish commercial attach to Israel, Hawthmar Aynmez, after this position had been vacant for years at the Turkish embassy.
On the other hand, Turkey is the largest carrier for Israeli travelers around the world, and Turkish Airlines has signed an agreement with the largest Israeli bank “Hapoalim” in order to issue “IsraCard” discount cards for flights from Turkey to Israel.
