Turkey’s Erdogan called Israel’s new president, but both sides said that the other must act first before any settlement can be reached.

A spokesperson for Turkey’s ruling party AK Party said on Wednesday that Turkey and Israel agreed to work to improve tensions after the rare phone call between the two presidents.

The two countries expelled their ambassador in 2018 after a fierce quarrel. Ankara condemned Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and its treatment of Palestinians, while Israel called on Turkey to abandon its support for Hamas, the Palestinian organization that rules Gaza.

Both parties stated that any reconciliation must let the other party go first.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the new Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Monday to congratulate him on taking office. The presidency of Israel is mainly a ceremonial position.

Spokesperson Omer Celik said after the AK party meeting: “After this call, a framework emerged, according to which progress should be made on several issues that can be improved, and measures should be taken to solve problematic areas.”

Celik specifically pointed out that the Palestinians are one of many issues that Turkey hopes to discuss with Israel, adding that areas such as tourism and trade should be a “win-win” for the two countries. In political disputes, bilateral trade remains strong.

‘State of Horror’

In a phone call a day after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas visited Ankara, Erdogan told Herzog that he values ??maintaining dialogue and said that Turkish-Israeli relations are the key to regional stability.

His office stated that Erdogan also reiterated his support for the two countries to resolve the Palestine-Israel conflict, adding that “positive steps” would also help Turkey-Israel relations.

In May, Erdogan called Israel a “terrorist country” After Israeli police fired rubber-coated steel bullets He also fired stun grenades at Palestinian youths in the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem.

Israel accuses Turkey of assisting members of Hamas, which is regarded as a “terrorist organization” by Israel and its Western allies.

Turkey has also recently tried to repair its tense relations with Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

Monday’s call was made a month after Naftali Bennett succeeded Benjamin Netanyahu as Israeli Prime Minister, with which Erdogan often confronted.