Turkish warships will escort the country's aid vessels bound for the Gaza Strip, protecting them from Israeli ships, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said late Thursday.

"Turkish warships will be tasked with protecting the Turkish boats bringing humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip," Erdogan told Al Jazeera television, according to an Arab-language translation of his comments in Turkish.

"From now on, we will no longer allow these boats to be the targets of attacks by Israel, like the one on the Freedom flotilla, because then Israel will have to deal with an appropriate response," he warned.

Erdogan was referring to the clash on May 31 last year when Israeli commandos boarded a six-boat flotilla in international waters in a bid to stop it from breaching Israel's blockade on Gaza.

Israeli troops killed nine Turkish nationals on the ship Mavi Marmara in the ensuing confrontation, sparking a diplomatic row between the two countries that has strained relations to breaking point.

"Turkey will be firm on its right to control the territorial waters in the east of the Mediterranean," Erdogan added.

Ankara had also "undertaken measures to prevent Israel unilaterally exploiting" the region's natural resources, he warned.

The United Nations published a report last week condemning last year's Israeli intervention -- but saying the blockade itself was legal.

Ankara expelled the Israeli ambassador and suspended all military ties, including defence-related trade contracts, in retaliation for Israel's refusal to apologise for the raid.

Israel rejects Turkey trade accusations
Jerusalem (AFP) Sept 8, 2011 - Israel on Thursday rejected Turkish claims that it lacks "trade ethics," saying it was still fixing drone parts that Ankara accuses the Jewish state of failing to deliver on schedule.

"Turkey and Israel have conducted security transactions for years and despite the current developments, there are still unfinished transactions between the two countries," a statement from the Israeli defence ministry said.

"One of these unfinished transactions is the renovation of parts for the drones," the statement added. "These engines are in a process of remodelling and improvement and work on them has not yet ended."

Turkey and Israel signed a deal in 2005 for the supply of the unmanned aircraft, which Ankara uses in its anti-terror operations.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday accused Israel of "disloyalty in our bilateral agreements in the defence industry area."

"Unmanned aerial vehicles were purchased and they were sent back for further maintenance. They (the Israelis) are still delaying the delivery. Is this moral?"

On Thursday, Erdogan repeated his government's complaints and said: "They (the drones) were not delivered to us on schedule... They were all paid. We believe and hope that they will be delivered to us as scheduled after fixing."

He further noted "as far as I know we have six drones there."

The once-close relations between the two nations sank to new depths last week after Israel refused to apologise for its deadly raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla in May 2010, which killed nine Turkish citizens.

Last Friday, Ankara announced it was expelling Israeli ambassador Gaby Levy, and cutting all military ties, including defence-related trade contracts, in the wake of a UN report on the incident.

The report criticised Israel for using "excessive" force in the raid but also upheld Israel's right to impose a naval blockade on Gaza to prevent arms reaching the Islamist movement Hamas, angering both Turkey and the Palestinians.

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