Kemal Ökem, a former foreign policy chief adviser to Turkey’s Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım, on Monday presented his credentials to President Reuven Rivlin along with the letter of recall of his predecessor Ahmet Oguz Celikkol who left Israel more than six years ago. Okem was the fourth of five new envoys who presented their credentials to the president. The first three were women: Helen Le Gal of France, Deborah Lyons of Canada and Sara Angelina Solis Casteneda of Guatemala. The last was non-resident ambassador Sman Manan of Cambodia who is stationed in Cairo. In the course of his welcome address to Okem, Rivlin termed the exchange of ambassadors between Israel and Turkey “a real moment in history." Of all five ambassadors, Okem appeared to be the most self assured and relaxed. He was also smiling and friendly and exchanged a few words with everyone on the reception line. Both he and Rivlin agreed that the reconciliation between their two countries was the beginning of a new and promising page in the relationship. At the onset, Rivlin expressed his deep condolences to the Turkish people; and to the victims of the recent terrorist attack in Istanbul as well as to the families who lost loved ones. “All life is sacred,” he said. “Terror is terror is terror whether in Brussels or Paris, Istanbul, Jerusalem, or Cairo. We have a duty to stand together against this terrible threat.” He also voiced his appreciation to President Erdogan for Turkey’s help in fighting the fires across Israel last month. Moving on to the future of the reconciled relationship, Rivlin said: “We must work together, to promote our economic relations, trade and energy cooperation as a real engine of growth for our friendship.” He also emphasized that in a changing Middle East,“We must find the way to give strength to the voices of peace and stability. We must strengthen our common ground.” On a more sensitive subject, Rivlin also thanked Erdogan for his commitment to help return the bodies of Israeli soldiers held by Hamas. Israel, like Turkey. places great importance in rebuilding the lives of the civilians in Gaza; he continued, detailing infrastructure, the economy, energy, water, and more. But, he stipulated, “this must be with the cooperation of the Palestinian Authority. It is also an important way to show that we can live together in this region. Israel and Turkey share a desire for peace and prosperity for all the peoples of the Middle East,” he said. Okem declared that Turkey condemns all forms of terrorism, regardless of their origin or of their target. In the beginning of Turkey’s and Israel’s relations in the region, he saw both challenges and big opportunities. He said that he would follow the instructions of both his president and his prime minister to explore all opportunities that would be of mutual benefit to both countries, and that would hopefully work for the benefit of the Palestinians as well. Also present at the meeting was Joseph Ciechanover, a former Director General of Israel’s Foreign Ministry who represented Israel on the United Nations review panel which investigated Israel’s raid on the Turkish flotilla bound for Gaza in May, 2010. Rivlin credited Ciechanover with being instrumental in facilitating the reconciliation between Turkey and Israel. Rivlin thanked Le Gal for France’s role in Israel’s security, saying that he remembered when the first Mirages and the first MIGs came to Israel. He had met Lyons and Casteneda previously - Lyons when the Governor General of Canada had paid a state visit to Israel and also when Canada’s prime minister had attended the funeral of Shimon Peres; and Casteneda when President Jimmy Morales recently paid a state visit to Israel.