Dr. Hay Eytan Cohen Yanarocak is an expert on contemporary Turkish politics and foreign policy, Turkish-Israeli relations, and the Kurds. He is co-editor of Turkeyscope, a publication of the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies at Tel Aviv University.
Standing with his Somalian and Ethiopian counterparts Ahmed Moalim Fiqi and Taye Atske Selassie, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held a press conference at his
The lecture was part of the session on the Middle East Regional Powers’ Struggle in Africa at the “Africa and Israel: Building Strategic and Economic Bridges” conference held on July 2, 2024, at Tel-Aviv University. The conference is a collaboration between the S. Daniel Abraham Center for International and Regional Studies at Tel-Aviv University, the Israel-Africa Relations Institute (IAI), and the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security (JISS).
The Turkish opposition’s landslide victory in recent municipal elections indicate that with continued tacit Kurdish collaboration with the opposition and given the deteriorating economy and growing desire for change, the next general snap-elections may be far more challenging for President Erdoğan.
The loss of Israel’s strong-state image in Ankara, together with Erdogan’s short-term need to deflect the opposition’s appropriation of the Palestinian cause have led the Turkish president to abandon his balanced realpolitik approach. For ties to return to normal, Israel will need to restore the perception of it as a strong nation and Turkey should distance itself from Hamas.
It is time for Israel, to demonstrate its real power against Hamas. Jerusalem’s firm stance on eradicating this ISIS-like terrorist entity will send a clear message to all destabilizing players in the region.
The post-Abraham Accords strategic environment in the Middle East and Azerbaijan’s emergence as a common denominator for Israel and Turkey are helping the two states come together.
Watch the recording of the JISS Briefing on the 2023 Turkish Elections
Two powerful earthquakes that struck Turkey’s southeast on February 6, 2023, have taken an enormous toll on lives and livelihoods, putting aside the economic and social damage of epic proportions inflicted on the country. Apart from the ensuing chaotic political atmosphere ahead of the general election in May, the tragedy also has implications for foreign policy.
Turkey’s relations with Sweden and Finland are at a crossroads, and it behooves all three countries to proceed with sensitivity to protect their national interests
For the last decade and a half, Ankara has shown an ever-increasing interest in Africa. The foundation of its foreign policy is focused on deepening penetration in the continent through its embassies, soft power agents, military forces, and defense industry.
To divert attention away from the antagonism between the two Arab parties, namely the Assad regime and the opposition, Ankara has designated the Syrian Kurds as the common enemy in order to unite all belligerent Arab parties on opposing sides.
Turkey’s mending of ties with Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and even to some extent, Egypt serves to isolate Tehran further and retaliate for the terrorist attack attempt against Israelis in Turkey.
