Turkey on Friday said Germany was still a key ally even after a parliament resolution recognising the mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman forces as genocide infuriated Ankara, predicting the spat would not lead to a sudden deterioration in ties.
Apparently seeking to keep the dispute from developing into a full-blown diplomatic crisis, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim emphasised the key Berlin-Ankara relationship would continue.
The German lower house on Thursday passed a non-binding resolution recognising the mass killings of Armenians from 1915 under the Ottoman Empire as genocide, prompting Ankara to recall its ambassador from Berlin for consultations.
The dispute sparked alarm over the potential damage to relations between Turkey and Germany at a sensitive time when the sides are working together to implement a deal seeking to halt illegal migration to the EU.
"Germany and Turkey are two very important allies. No one should expect that relations will suddenly deteriorate completely because of this decision or similar decisions," Yildirim told a news conference before a visit to Azerbaijan.
"That doesn't mean however that we will not react, that we will say nothing," he added, pointing to a counter resolution passed by the Turkish parliament condemning its German counterpart.
"With this decision, Turkey's relations with Germany have been seriously damaged," he said.
But he added: "Whatever the circumstances, we will continue the relationship with our friends and our allies."
The use of the word "genocide" goes to the heart of a long-running battle for world opinion between Armenia and Turkey over the massacres committed a century ago.
Armenia has led a decades-long campaign to have the bloodshed characterised as genocide, which Turkey rejects as a gross injustice. Ankara argues the killings were a collective tragedy in which equal numbers of Turks and Armenians died.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned on Thursday that the motion would "seriously affect" ties between the countries and said he would take further action when he returned to Turkey from a visit to Kenya.
The move also caused fury among radical elements within the Turkish elite, with ruling party executive committee member Burhan Kuzu saying it was because of the "infidel" Germany that the Ottoman Empire had collapsed.
At the time of the killings in World War I, the Ottoman Empire and Imperial Germany were allies with German generals commanding Ottoman forces in some areas.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who did not attend the vote in parliament, vowed that her government will "do everything to foster dialogue between Armenia and Turkey".