Relations between the two countries have taildived since Gaza slaughter. From Al-Jazeera, a military exercise cancelled. And:
Ahmet Davutoglu, the Turkish foreign minister, cancelled his visit to Israel in September after Israel denied his request to visit the Gaza Strip from Israeli territory.
Oh, Gaza’s not occupied, they say.
Maybe the Israelis will now recognize Armenian genocide. That would help in the Armenian Quarter of the Old City, too.
link to haaretz.com
Sounds reasonable. But not to the US, which withdrew its own participation in the event, which was then cancelled. This is nothing more than explicit US support and approval for Israel’s actions in Gaza, the US confirming the Israeli Right To Massacre.
from the linked article: Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon called Ankara’s step “a blow to NATO, European and American interests,” and suggested the United States and other NATO members approach Turkey over the exclusion.
It’s a blow to NATO if a non-NATO country doesn’t participate in a NATO exercise? This is of a piece with Israeli government claims that recognition of the Goldstone report will hamper our efforts to protect ourselves, when it is obvious to anyone with more than two brain cells to form a neural net that the opposite is true. I wonder if Danny Ayalon actually believes that reality for the other nations of the world orbits around Tel Aviv.
“White is black. Up is down. The moon really is made of blue cheese. PLEASE, ya gotta believe me! My PR hacks have run out of ideas to convince you to cut yourself off at the knees.”
This is a >b>big shot across the Israeli bow. NATO has existed to protect Europe. (I know one can argue its post-Cold War utility, but its continued existence still serves many interests.) Good relations (sociopolitical glue) with Turkey are far more important to long-term European security than relations with Israel, and this is not likely to change. Israeli participation in Anatolian Eagle contributes nothing to US security. For every relevant American interest, except the Lobby, American participation is all pros and no cons. If Israel is not invited to the next one, the Lobby will have to expend substantial dwindling political capital to keep us out of it. The day it stops, we will quietly rejoin as if nothing had happened.
Israel being involved in NATO exercises is detrimental to American security. I have noticed another time that Israel is joined with NATO. This should stop. I am concerned.
This could have something to do with it:
Turkish media sources detail information implicating the Israeli Mossad in a plot to assassinate Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
An e-mail found on a personal computer belonging to one of the members of the underground Ergenekon organization exposed Mossad’s role in the failed assassination efforts against Erdogan, Turkish media outlets reported on Friday.
The organization has been accused of orchestrating a coup plot against the current Turkish administration.
The indictment list tabled by the Turkish prosecution against the organization says that an Israeli journalist had sent the e-mail to a number of Ergenekon figures to inform them of Israeli readiness to assassinate the Turkish premier.
According to sources in the Turkish press, the e-mail promised support for Mr. Dugo — whose identity has not been revealed — against Erdogan after coordination with Mossad chief Meir Dagan.
The e-mail explained that the Mossad would wait for a green light from Mr. Dugo to carry on with the assassination plans.
Turkish sources have claimed Mr. Dugo to be Turkish Labor Party head Dugo Prinitchek — who is suspected of leading the secret organization.
The news of an alleged Israeli role in the plot comes after a report last month suggested that Tel Aviv sought to stage regime change in Turkey in response to Ankara’s condemnation of Israeli crimes in the Gaza Strip.
Tensions between Israel and Turkey emerged in late January, when Erdogan stormed out of a Davos forum after a heated debate with Israeli President Shimon Peres on the military aggression brought upon Gaza.
The Turkish prime minister walked out of the debate — attended by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and other panel members –, while complaining that his comments on the conflict were cut short by the Washington Post’s moderator David Ignatius.
Erdogan had told Peres at the Forum, “When it comes to killing, you know very well how to kill.”
The criticism was leveled at the Israeli killing of over 1,350 Gazans amid a crippling 20-month blockade on the densely-populated Palestinian sliver.
“I know very well how you hit and killed children on beaches,” he lashed out.
link to presstv.ir
somehow this news report from an iranian source seems spurious. it could be true but would mossad email several individuals with incriminating information.
Although Turkey has played pattycake with Israel for quite some time now, it’s nice to know they haven’t been totally co-opted.
It serves them right.
Israel sold its soul for a bowl of lentils when it refused to hold the Turks accountable for the Armenian genocide. Pragmatic reasons were cited then.
The current Turkish about-face shows where blind pragmatism leads. Yet I don’t think that will convince Israel that genocides of non-Jewish people also matter.