WASHINGTON – US President Barack Obama spoke to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday and expressed his hope that Turkey and Israel willfind opportunities to improve their relations in the interest of regional stability.
The White House issued a statement saying the two leaders discussed recent developments in the Middle East.
According to the statement Obama and Erdogan expressed their deep concern about the Syrian government’s unacceptable use of violence againstits own people.
"The leaders agreed that the Syrian government must end the use of violence now and promptly enact meaningful reforms that respect the democratic aspirations of Syrian citizens," the statement noted.
Obama also thanked Erdogan for Turkey’s ongoing humanitarian efforts in Libya andits participation in the NATO No-Fly Zone and Arms Embargo operations.
Diplomatic relations between Jerusalem and Ankara are at an all time low following the IDF raid on the Marmara ship last May and the death of nine Turkish citizens. Turkey has since demanded that Israel publically apologize for causing their deaths.