Turkey is systematically ratcheting up tensions with Israel, using the Gaza flotilla incident:
Erdogan & Co are obviously doing this to make themselves the big kids on the Islamic bloc.
But will they be able to continue riding this tiger, or will things blow up in their face?
I'd always felt that the Israelis made a deep strategic error in forging a longterm strategic alliance with the Turks. It was inevitable that Kemalist secularism would collapse in the long run. Now that it has, what will the Israelis do? They have now left themselves in a strategic wilderness.
If I were them, I would quickly try to improve ties with Greece, including even its crooked socialists.
2 comments:
A good move to be friendly with Greece and as long as Cyprus remains a contentious bone, Israel can certainly look to have some space to work Turkey into a corner.
But, that said, the current love fest between Turkey and the EU loks like a hindrance to Israel. The EU crooks are always up to their antics and never shy away from fraternizing with Islamist regimes.
smriti, I agree with you on the EU-Istanbul love affair. But I likewise wonder if this will blow up on EU's face, with the EU nurturing a monster that will one day confront it.
Perhaps the Europeans feel a false sense of reassurance that as long as Israel exists, it will be the main magnet for Turkish and Islamic anger.
We've already seen the divide between north and south Europe on fiscal policy. I wonder if we'll also see a similar divide between north and south on relations with Turkey, its admission to Europe, and Turkish immigration. If so, then the Israelis will have one heck of a lever or wedge issue to wield against EU, to avoid being isolated by them.
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