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 nuclear programme and growing bilateral ties with Turkey during a one-day working visit on August 14, which comes after months of lobbying by Tehran.
"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. Reuters
Agencies
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