Hamas should recognize Israel’s right to exist, the president of Turkey, Abdullah Gul, told the Wall Street Journal.

Gul also called President Barack Obama’s call to create a Palestinian state on pre-1967 borders with mutually agreed land swaps “a very important step,” in an interview May 20 with Journal, a day after Obama’s major policy speech on the Mideast.

Gul told the newspaper that Obama “has a point” when he said last week that Israel should not be expected to negotiate with a group that does not recognize Israel’s right to exist.

He said he has pressed Hamas on the issue, including in a 2006 meeting with top Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal in Ankara. — jta