Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu postponed his visit to Azerbaijan, amid reports that the reason is Türkiye’s refusal to allow his plane to cross its air field.
The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today, Saturday, that it was decided to postpone the visit of the Prime Minister scheduled in the coming days to Azerbaijan, due to several reasons, including recent developments in Gaza and Syria.
The office also referred to the “intense diplomatic and security schedule”, adding that it was decided to reschedule the visit, without announcing a new date.
Netanyahu, Azerbaijan, was scheduled to visit from May 11 to May 11; During the visit, Netanyahu was supposed to meet President Ilham Aliyev.
Israel and Azerbaijan have close ties in the fields of security and energy.
Last Tuesday, the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation (official) said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu intends to make an official visit to Azerbaijan next Wednesday, for a 5 -day visit.
Türkiye clarifies
While Netanyahu’s office attributed the postponement of the visit to the ongoing developments in Gaza and Syria, the Israeli website, Walaa, quoted sources, that Türkiye’s refusal to grant Netanyahu a permit to pass through its air field is the reason for postponing the visit.
Parallel to this, the Turkish Foreign Ministry denied, today, Saturday, the validity of what it described as allegations about allowing the Netanyahu plane to use the Turkish airspace.
“The allegations that the Israeli Prime Minister’s plane obtained permission to fly over Turkish territory is absolutely incorrect, and we have not received any request in this direction,” ministry spokesman UN though in a statement said in a statement.
On the 11th of last month, the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation said that two days ago, Turkey refused to allow an Israeli Air Force plane carrying a negotiating delegation through its atmosphere on its way to Azerbaijan, where negotiations took place between Ankara and Tel Aviv on developments in Syria.
The authority explained that the Turks “refused to allow the Air Force 707 Ram 707 plane, which reduced the Israeli delegation, to pass through the Turkish airspace, so it was forced to change its path across the Black Sea.”
It quoted an informed Israeli source who declined to be named as saying that “the Turks are unwilling to allow the air weapon aircraft to pass through their lands due to the association of this with the war in Gaza.”
“The ban decision came before the talks that took place on Thursday between representatives of the two countries in Azerbaijan, after not reaching agreements on tensions in Syria and finding a way to prevent war,” she added.
She also indicated that “there are no commercial flights between Israel and Turkey since the beginning of the war on the Gaza Strip on October 7, 2023”.
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