Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz.’ Photo: Liron Moldovan.

JNS.org – Following a top Israeli minister’s visit to Istanbul last week, Israel and Turkey have reportedly agreed to deepen energy sector ties and further cooperate in gas exploration.

In a meeting Thursday between Israeli Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz and his Turkish counterpart Berat Albayrak, the idea of building a pipeline to supply Turkey with Israeli natural gas was discussed, Steinitz said.

According to Steinitz, the countries, who recently normalized ties after a breakdown in relations six years ago, have “agreed to establish immediately a dialogue to examine the possibility and the feasibility” of the pipeline project, The Associated Press reported.

In the meeting, the first between the energy ministers since relations were repaired last summer, they also discussed Turkey’s role in supplying electricity and other energy sources to the Palestinians.

“We are careful to keep our security,” Steinitz said. “But if the Turkish government and companies are involved in improving the life of ordinary people in Gaza…we will do our best to enable this.”