Tweet
Chicago Tribune , IL
July 18 2004
Ties between Turkey, Israel grow strained
Middle Eastern allies disagree over Israel's handling of
Palestinians, reports of training Kurdish commandos
By Catherine Collins
Special to the Tribune
Published July 18, 2004
ISTANBUL -- When Israel's deputy prime minister arrived in Turkey
last week on a fence-mending mission, he found that Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was away on vacation.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry said Erdogan's holiday had been planned
long before the visit. Yet it came at a time when relations between
the two allies have frayed over Israel's actions against Palestinians
and published reports alleging that Israeli military officers are
training Kurdish commandos who want to establish an independent
nation.
As the only secular democracies in the Middle East, Turkey and Israel
have forged a friendship of mutual need and support. Both define
themselves as more Western--culturally, politically and
economically--than Middle Eastern.
Turkey was the first Muslim-majority country to recognize Israel in
1948, and ties between the two countries have blossomed in recent
years.
But in recent weeks Erdogan has been sharply critical of Israel's
tactics against the Palestinians. He condemned the Sharon
government's policies as "inhumane" and accused Israel of
"state-sponsored terrorism."
In a recent briefing to members of his ruling Justice and Development
Party, Erdogan said: "We have no problem with the Israeli people, but
unfortunately, what the Israeli government has been doing is leading
to an increase in anti-Semitism in the world."
Turkey's foreign minister, Abdullah Gul, echoed Erdogan's sentiments
last week as he warned that Israel's actions could damage relations.
Turkish and Israeli diplomats are quick to say that ties between the
two countries remain strong. But Erdogan's tough talk has raised
concerns.
"This is not the way that friendly nations speak to each other," said
Barry Jacobs, director of strategic studies at the American Jewish
Committee in Washington, during a recent trip to Turkey. "But as
Archie Bunker said, `stifle.' This relationship is too important to
allow it to be held hostage to momentary anger."
The visiting Israeli official, Ehud Olmert, shrugged off Erdogan's
absence and statements.
"We cannot assess policy by just one statement," Olmert said during
an interview on CNN-Turk television when asked about Erdogan's
comments.
Turkey and Israel have maintained strong, if not cordial, relations
for decades. Whether Erdogan's criticism signals a substantive change
in the relationship is a matter of debate.
Turkish government officials and the public are increasingly
alienated by what they see as Israel's severe steps against Muslims
in the West Bank and Gaza. At the same time, Turkey is trying to
rekindle relations with its Arab neighbors and improve ties with the
European Union, which is also critical of Israel's government.
`The right context'
Turkish officials, meanwhile, have tried to avoid going too far in
angering Israel and its main ally, the United States. A spokesman for
the Foreign Ministry said the relationship with Israel has not
changed and remains important.
"The remarks by both our prime minister and foreign minister should
be put into the right context," the spokesman said.
"They spoke out during developments in Palestinian and Israeli
relations that resulted in condemnations from many countries, even
the United Nations. Turkish reaction should be seen as part of a
general reaction, no more than that," he said.
Ties between the nations include Turkey's spending $3 billion on
Israeli military hardware since 1996. They conduct regular joint
military exercises, and Turkey allows Israeli fighter pilots to train
in its airspace.
Most of their bilateral trade is in the private sector and reached a
record $1.25 billion last year. Trade is expected to increase again
this year to $1.5 billion. And Turkey is considered the favorite
destination for Israeli tourists.
In exchange for the economic and military ties, Turkey has
supplemented its notoriously weak lobbying effort in the U.S. by
relying on the influential Jewish lobby.
Most prominently, Jewish-American groups have helped Turkey battle
against efforts by Armenian-Americans to declare the deaths of
hundreds of thousands of Turkish Armenians in the early 20th Century
a genocide.
Analysts and diplomats say it is unclear how to interpret Erdogan's
criticism of Israel.
Alon Liel, a former director general of the Israeli Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and author of a book about the Turkish prime
minister, said he believes that Erdogan's comments were not a
political ploy but an instinctive reaction to events, beginning with
Israel's assassination of Sheik Ahmed Yassin, a Hamas spiritual
leader, in March.
"Erdogan saw Sheik Ahmed Yassin as a religious and political leader,"
Liel said in a phone interview from Tel Aviv. "And he was disturbed
by the fact that the assassination occurred as Yassin left the
mosque. And that Yassin was in a wheelchair. It was an instinctive
reaction, not something that he planned to please the Arab world."
Playing to EU
Liel and others also see Erdogan playing to the European Union, which
is expected to decide in December whether to give Turkey a date to
start negotiations that could lead to its eventual membership.
"If there is anyone Erdogan wants to please, it's the EU countries,"
Liel said. "I see this as an attempt to say to them, `Look we care
about human rights issues too.'"
Others think Erdogan's comments could strike a sympathetic chord with
Arab nations, which have not considered the country "Muslim enough"
since it became a secular democracy in 1923.
But analysts cautioned that Turkey would run risks if it moves too
far from its U.S.-Israel alliance.
"While Erdogan and his party may think that the EU and the Middle
East might prefer such a Turkey, if the U.S.-Israel side does not
stand behind Turkey, then it will have no chance in the EU," said
Zeyno Baran, director of international security and energy programs
at the Nixon Center in Washington.
Turkey's concerns about Israel's actions increased earlier this month
after The New Yorker magazine reported that Israeli military officers
were training large numbers of Kurdish commandos just across Turkey's
southern border in northern Iraq.
Ankara is worried about the possibility of a renewed Kurdish
insurgency on its southern flank and the report raised alarms.
Turkish intelligence officials said they have detected a small number
of Israelis conducting training exercises in the region, but a senior
Israeli diplomat in the country denied that the Israeli military was
involved in northern Iraq.
"It is against common wisdom that Israel would conduct such
activities against the interests of a friendly state like Turkey,"
said the diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "If we had
any intention, the Turks would be the first to know and the first
with whom we would coordinate."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
July 18 2004
Ties between Turkey, Israel grow strained
Middle Eastern allies disagree over Israel's handling of
Palestinians, reports of training Kurdish commandos
By Catherine Collins
Special to the Tribune
Published July 18, 2004
ISTANBUL -- When Israel's deputy prime minister arrived in Turkey
last week on a fence-mending mission, he found that Turkish Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was away on vacation.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry said Erdogan's holiday had been planned
long before the visit. Yet it came at a time when relations between
the two allies have frayed over Israel's actions against Palestinians
and published reports alleging that Israeli military officers are
training Kurdish commandos who want to establish an independent
nation.
As the only secular democracies in the Middle East, Turkey and Israel
have forged a friendship of mutual need and support. Both define
themselves as more Western--culturally, politically and
economically--than Middle Eastern.
Turkey was the first Muslim-majority country to recognize Israel in
1948, and ties between the two countries have blossomed in recent
years.
But in recent weeks Erdogan has been sharply critical of Israel's
tactics against the Palestinians. He condemned the Sharon
government's policies as "inhumane" and accused Israel of
"state-sponsored terrorism."
In a recent briefing to members of his ruling Justice and Development
Party, Erdogan said: "We have no problem with the Israeli people, but
unfortunately, what the Israeli government has been doing is leading
to an increase in anti-Semitism in the world."
Turkey's foreign minister, Abdullah Gul, echoed Erdogan's sentiments
last week as he warned that Israel's actions could damage relations.
Turkish and Israeli diplomats are quick to say that ties between the
two countries remain strong. But Erdogan's tough talk has raised
concerns.
"This is not the way that friendly nations speak to each other," said
Barry Jacobs, director of strategic studies at the American Jewish
Committee in Washington, during a recent trip to Turkey. "But as
Archie Bunker said, `stifle.' This relationship is too important to
allow it to be held hostage to momentary anger."
The visiting Israeli official, Ehud Olmert, shrugged off Erdogan's
absence and statements.
"We cannot assess policy by just one statement," Olmert said during
an interview on CNN-Turk television when asked about Erdogan's
comments.
Turkey and Israel have maintained strong, if not cordial, relations
for decades. Whether Erdogan's criticism signals a substantive change
in the relationship is a matter of debate.
Turkish government officials and the public are increasingly
alienated by what they see as Israel's severe steps against Muslims
in the West Bank and Gaza. At the same time, Turkey is trying to
rekindle relations with its Arab neighbors and improve ties with the
European Union, which is also critical of Israel's government.
`The right context'
Turkish officials, meanwhile, have tried to avoid going too far in
angering Israel and its main ally, the United States. A spokesman for
the Foreign Ministry said the relationship with Israel has not
changed and remains important.
"The remarks by both our prime minister and foreign minister should
be put into the right context," the spokesman said.
"They spoke out during developments in Palestinian and Israeli
relations that resulted in condemnations from many countries, even
the United Nations. Turkish reaction should be seen as part of a
general reaction, no more than that," he said.
Ties between the nations include Turkey's spending $3 billion on
Israeli military hardware since 1996. They conduct regular joint
military exercises, and Turkey allows Israeli fighter pilots to train
in its airspace.
Most of their bilateral trade is in the private sector and reached a
record $1.25 billion last year. Trade is expected to increase again
this year to $1.5 billion. And Turkey is considered the favorite
destination for Israeli tourists.
In exchange for the economic and military ties, Turkey has
supplemented its notoriously weak lobbying effort in the U.S. by
relying on the influential Jewish lobby.
Most prominently, Jewish-American groups have helped Turkey battle
against efforts by Armenian-Americans to declare the deaths of
hundreds of thousands of Turkish Armenians in the early 20th Century
a genocide.
Analysts and diplomats say it is unclear how to interpret Erdogan's
criticism of Israel.
Alon Liel, a former director general of the Israeli Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and author of a book about the Turkish prime
minister, said he believes that Erdogan's comments were not a
political ploy but an instinctive reaction to events, beginning with
Israel's assassination of Sheik Ahmed Yassin, a Hamas spiritual
leader, in March.
"Erdogan saw Sheik Ahmed Yassin as a religious and political leader,"
Liel said in a phone interview from Tel Aviv. "And he was disturbed
by the fact that the assassination occurred as Yassin left the
mosque. And that Yassin was in a wheelchair. It was an instinctive
reaction, not something that he planned to please the Arab world."
Playing to EU
Liel and others also see Erdogan playing to the European Union, which
is expected to decide in December whether to give Turkey a date to
start negotiations that could lead to its eventual membership.
"If there is anyone Erdogan wants to please, it's the EU countries,"
Liel said. "I see this as an attempt to say to them, `Look we care
about human rights issues too.'"
Others think Erdogan's comments could strike a sympathetic chord with
Arab nations, which have not considered the country "Muslim enough"
since it became a secular democracy in 1923.
But analysts cautioned that Turkey would run risks if it moves too
far from its U.S.-Israel alliance.
"While Erdogan and his party may think that the EU and the Middle
East might prefer such a Turkey, if the U.S.-Israel side does not
stand behind Turkey, then it will have no chance in the EU," said
Zeyno Baran, director of international security and energy programs
at the Nixon Center in Washington.
Turkey's concerns about Israel's actions increased earlier this month
after The New Yorker magazine reported that Israeli military officers
were training large numbers of Kurdish commandos just across Turkey's
southern border in northern Iraq.
Ankara is worried about the possibility of a renewed Kurdish
insurgency on its southern flank and the report raised alarms.
Turkish intelligence officials said they have detected a small number
of Israelis conducting training exercises in the region, but a senior
Israeli diplomat in the country denied that the Israeli military was
involved in northern Iraq.
"It is against common wisdom that Israel would conduct such
activities against the interests of a friendly state like Turkey,"
said the diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "If we had
any intention, the Turks would be the first to know and the first
with whom we would coordinate."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress