by Boaz Bismuth
Various parliaments across the globe, among them the French, were quick to recognize Palestine while inexplicably forgetting about Kurdistan.
Turkey always espoused a
policy of zero conflicts. For years Ankara believed this was the best
way to enhance its international standing -- even at the expense of the
United States. Up until recently, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
had some very lofty aspirations, but something went wrong with his
plan. The Turks now find themselves in the middle of a global war of
terror, and instead of zero conflicts they have zero friendly neighbors.
If that weren't enough, inside Turkey are millions of refugees and far
too many bombings. At this rate, Turkey will also find itself with zero
accomplishments.
The emerging
Turkish-Israeli reconciliation needs to be put in precisely this
context. It's not easy for Ankara to suddenly be alone in the
neighborhood, friendless: The Iranians were never true partners; the
bitter enemy Bashar Assad, who had one foot in the grave, received a
stay of execution and a new hold on his country from Putin, who became
Ankara's biggest new enemy ever since a Russian spy plane was shot out
of the sky.
The Europeans as well,
despite agreements in place, are not really partners. This has been
especially true since it became apparent that Islamic State terrorist[s],
utilizing the Turkish double game, crossed the Syrian border and
eventually into Europe to carry out terrorist attacks.
Of course, reports of
oil deals between Turkey and ISIS, exposed by the Russians, have not
helped Ankara's image in the world. If we closely examine Turkey's
extremely opportunistic policies from the past decade, we will see that
Ankara has rightfully earned its current predicament.
Of all countries,
however, Israel, which for decades has been the victim of Palestinian
terrorist organizations, has reason to stand by Turkey in these
difficult days.
Although the sides have
yet to settle the two issues at the heart of their discord, namely
Hamas operating out of Istanbul and the blockade of Gaza, which Ankara
wants lifted, it appears Turkey is inclined to close the gaps. That is,
of course, unless someone in Ankara believes this is still the time for
playing games.
The Counterterrorism
Bureau on Friday issued a rare warning, calling on Israelis visiting
Turkey to leave the country immediately, and on those planning trips
there to postpone them. The Americans, almost simultaneously, issued a
similar warning. We can assume that both warnings are based on the same
information.
Turkey today is on the
defensive against ISIS and the Kurdish PKK. In the past, Turkey acted
according to its own set of priorities. While the world saw ISIS as a
threat, Turkey saw it as an opportunity to yet again prevent the
establishment of an independent Kurdish state.
And this perhaps is the
point that Israel needs to ponder, in a Middle East that is not only
changing but being reconstructed. From a historical perspective, the
Kurds have always stood by our side. We too, in various times throughout
history, have stood by them. The Kurds, along with Israel, are the most
formidable pro-Western force in the Middle East today. The manner in
which they have confronted ISIS in Syria and Iraq (representing the only
significant force on the ground) obligates the international community
to compensate them.
The question of an
independent Kurdistan is undoubtedly a legitimate one, which for some
reason or another is being pushed aside. Various parliaments across the
globe, among them the French, were quick to recognize Palestine while
inexplicably forgetting about Kurdistan.
One of Israel's main
problems in the way of recognizing Kurdish self-determination was its
fruitful cooperation with Turkey. The Israeli-Turkish rift could have
pushed Israel to consummate something that began in the 1950s in Iraq,
and put into practice the axiom stipulating that "the enemy of my enemy
is my friend." And perhaps this is the exact reason that Erdogan, who
understands we are living in a changing world, would rather be friends
again.
Boaz Bismuth
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=15763
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
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