Erdoğan says Turkey may recall its ambassador from UAE over Israel deal

Turkey may recall its ambassador from United Arab Emirates (UAE) over the Israel deal and suspend the diplomatic relations with the country, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on Friday.

Turkey's Foreign Ministry, earlier in the day, said that history will never forgive the “hypocritical behaviour” by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in agreeing a deal with Israel to normalise relations.

“History and the conscience of the region’s peoples will not forget and never forgive this hypocritical behaviour of the UAE, betraying the Palestinian cause for the sake of its narrow interests,” Reuters cited the ministry as saying on Friday.

“It is extremely worrying that the UAE should, with a unilateral action, try and do away with the (2002) Arab Peace Plan developed by the Arab League. It is not in the slightest credible that this three-way declaration should be presented as supporting the Palestinian cause,” it added.

Turkey was one of the first countries to recognise the state of Israel and establish ties with the country in 1949, but now threatens to cut diplomatic ties with the UAE for doing the same, said one student of history of law in a tweet.

one of the first countries to establish diplomatic ties with israel threatens to cut diplomatic ties with the latest country going to establish diplomatic ties with israel over establishing diplomatic ties with israel https://t.co/kl1hM1nxqF

— Özge Kâtip And The Neverending Master's Thesis (@OzgeKatip) August 14, 2020

U.S. President Donald Trump helped broker the accord in which the UAE becomes the third Arab country to establish full relations with Israel, after Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994.

Until now Israel has had no diplomatic relations with Gulf Arab countries. However, shared concerns over Iran have led to unofficial contacts between them.

Turkey has diplomatic and trade ties with Israel, but relations have been strained for years. 

In 2010 Israeli commandos killed 10 Turkish activists trying to reach the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian territory under Israeli blockade.