Germany's Foreign Ministry says the Turkish ambassador has returned to his post in Berlin, some four months after he was recalled amid fury in Ankara over a parliamentary resolution that labeled the killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks a century ago as genocide, the Associated Press reports.

Deputy foreign minister Markus Ederer met with ambassador Huseyin Avni Karslioglu Friday, October 7 and said his return was "an important positive step in bilateral relations."

The ambassador's return was the latest sign of a thaw between the two countries following the June vote in Parliament.

Last month, Turkey gave its approval for German lawmakers to visit German troops at a Turkish air base, ending a standoff that had deepened strains in ties between the two NATO allies. The visit took place earlier this week.