By Zerin Elci
ANKARA (Reuters) – Israel has expressed its “discomfort” to Turkey over its decision to invite Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Istanbul next week, an Israeli diplomatic official said on Friday.
Ahmadinejad will discuss Iran’s disputed nuclear programme and growing bilateral ties with Turkey during a one-day working visit on Aug 14, which comes after months of lobbying by Tehran.
Predominantly Sunni Muslim Turkey, which has good ties with Israel, has offered to help resolve a dispute between Iran and the West over Tehran’s nuclear programme, which the West fears is aimed at producing atomic weapons.
“We see this visit as unfortunate, especially in the sensitive and crucial time in which Iran is not giving a direct reply to the West about its nuclear programme,” the Israeli diplomatic official based in Ankara told Reuters.
“The Iranian president keeps calling for the destruction of the Israeli state and denies the Holocaust, so this visit is unfortunate because it gives legitimacy to Iran,” the official said, adding Israel had relayed its position to the Turkish Foreign Ministry.
Turkey and Iran have growing trade ties and are negotiating expanding energy cooperation. President Abdullah Gul and Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan have also sought to boost Turkey’s role as a regional problem solver in the Middle East.
Turkey is also acting as mediator in indirect talks between Israel and Syria, but the Israeli diplomatic official said Ahmadinejad’s visit will not affect those negotiations.
Major powers fear Tehran wants to build an atomic bomb. Iran, the world’s fourth-largest oil producer, insists it is only seeking to master nuclear technology to generate power.
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