Israel–Turkey relations
The State of Israel and the Republic of Türkiye formally established diplomatic relations in March 1949. Less than a year after the Israeli Declaration of Independence, Turkey recognized Israeli sovereignty, making it the world's first Muslim-majority country to do so. Both countries gave high priority to bilateral cooperation in the areas of diplomacy and military/strategic ties, while sharing concerns with respect to the regional instabilities in the Middle East.
In recent decades, particularly under Turkey's Erdoğan administration, the two countries' relationship with each other has deteriorated considerably. However, diplomatic ties were reinstated after a normalization initiative in mid-2022. Relations soured again after the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, with Turkey condemning Israel and backing Hamas.
On 13 November 2024, Erdoğan announced that Turkey was severing all its diplomatic relations with Israel due to Israel's reluctance to end the Gaza war.
Overview
In 1999, the New York Times reported that the strategic partnership between Turkey and Israel had the potential to alter Middle East politics: Trade and tourism were booming, the Israel Air Force practiced maneuvers in Turkish airspace and Israeli technicians were modernizing Turkish combat jets. There were also plans for high-tech cooperation and water sharing.Recep Tayyip Erdoğan paid an official visit to Israel in 2005 and said he hoped to play a role in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. Relations deteriorated after the 2008–09 Gaza War and the 2010 Gaza flotilla raid. In March 2013, Israel apologized for the raid, opening a path for normalized relations. Alleged Turkish involvement in exposure of Israeli special agents in Iran in October 2013 created further tension. In December 2015, Turkey and Israel held a secret meeting to negotiate restoration of diplomatic relations. They reached an agreement on 27 June 2016 to start normalizing ties.
In December 2017, Erdoğan threatened to break off ties again, this time due to United States recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.
History
Ottoman policy towards Jews
Under Sultan Bayezid II, the Ottoman Empire was welcoming and supportive of Jewish refugees. As a result, the Jews were fiercely loyal to the Ottoman Empire during the anti-Ottoman rebellions in the Balkans and fled to regions under its jurisdiction when persecution intensified against Jews in Russian Empire and Western Europe. Zionist leader Theodor Herzl even asked then-Ottoman Sultan, Abdul Hamid II, to acquire Palestine and fulfil the promise of returning to Zion.However, with the rise of Turkish nationalism in late 19th century, Jews started to bear pressure, as the Young Turks government were determined to Turkify all non-Turk subjects, including Jews. Eventually, with the outbreak of World War I, the Ottoman Empire had begun losing its tolerance toward Jews, and openly demonstrated systematic oppression and deportation on the Jewish subjects, accusing them of collaborating with the British Empire. Many Jews were also either suspected to be Russian agents, since most Jews migrated to Palestine were from Russia at the time, despite various figures like David Ben-Gurion and Yitzhak Ben-Zvi sought to ally with Turkey, eventually led to deportation and repression on Jews intensified. The hostility against Ottoman Empire among Jews increased leading to the establishment of Nili, a Jewish espionage spy network fighting the Ottomans, but they were exposed in 1917 and only escaped from the genocide that Ottoman Armenians, Greeks and Assyrians endured due to political intervention from Germany and Vatican. Despite this, the Tel Aviv and Jaffa deportation, issued by Djemal Pasha in 1917 in retaliation to the Jewish spy ring, was the final string of this hostility, during which thousands of Jews were killed, has continued to weigh influence on the modern Israeli–Turkish relations as well as Israel's relations with Turkic world.
Diplomacy timeline
Initial contact
Although it had voted against the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine, Turkey recognized the State of Israel in 1949. Turkey's first diplomatic mission in Israel was a "Legation" and was officially inaugurated on 7 January 1950 and the first Turkish Chief of Mission, Seyfullah Esin presented his credentials to Chaim Weizmann, President of Israel. However, the Turkish Legation was downgraded to the level of "Charge d’Affaires" after the Suez Canal Crisis on 26 November 1956.In 1958, Israeli prime minister David Ben-Gurion and Turkish prime minister Adnan Menderes met secretly to discuss a "peripheral pact" which included public-relations campaigns, exchange of intelligence information and military support. In 1967, Turkey joined the Arab condemnation of Israel after the Six-Day War and called for Israel's withdrawal from the occupied territories but abstained from voting in favor of a clause referring to Israel as an "aggressor state." At a meeting of the Organization of the Islamic Conference in Rabat, Morocco, Turkey opposed a resolution calling for severing diplomatic relations with Israel.
As a result of positive developments in bilateral ties, the Turkish mission in Tel-Aviv was upgraded back to the level of "Legation" in July 1963 and further upgraded to the level of "Embassy" as of January 1980.
Upon Israel's annexation of East Jerusalem and enunciation of Jerusalem as its eternal capital, the representation was relegated to the level of "Second Secretary" on 30 November 1980.
During the 1990s
The positive atmosphere in the Israeli–Palestinian peace process in the early 1990s made it possible to raise the mutual diplomatic relations once again to Ambassadorial level and a Turkish Ambassador presented his credentials to President Chaim Herzog, on 23 March 1992, in Tel Aviv.Israel has maintained two diplomatic missions in Turkey: its embassy is located in the capital city of Ankara, and its Consulate General is located in Turkey's largest city, Istanbul. Until the recent downgrading in relations, the Israeli ambassador to Turkey was Gabby Levy, and the Israeli consul-general was Mordechai Amihai. These missions are responsible for Israeli consular affairs for the Marmara, Aegean, Eastern Thrace and western part of the Black Sea regions of Turkey.
Post-AKP ascendancy
In Turkey's 2002 election, the Justice and Development Party, also known as AKP, won a landslide victory. Prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan visited Israel in 2005 offering to serve as a Middle East peace mediator and looking to build up trade and military ties. Erdoğan brought a large group of businessmen on his two-day trip, which included talks with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and President Moshe Katsav. Erdoğan also laid a wreath at the Holocaust memorial, Yad Vashem. Erdoğan told Sharon that his Justice and Development Party regarded anti-Semitism as "a crime against humanity". He added that Iran's nuclear ambitions were a threat not just to Israel but to "the entire world".In early 2006, the Israeli Foreign Ministry described its country's relations with Turkey as "perfect". A joint Israeli-Palestinian industrial park was being developed under Turkey's aegis. Israeli President Shimon Peres and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas addressed the Grand National Assembly of Turkey a day apart. Peres described Turkey as an "important player in the Middle East in relation to the United States, Syria and the Palestinians, as well as us". According to a report in the Jerusalem Post, a spokeswoman for the Syrian Foreign Ministry said that Turkey was serving as a "channel of communication" between Syria and Israel.
On a three-day visit to Ankara in November 2007, Peres met with Turkish President Abdullah Gül and addressed the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. Gül promised to help free three abducted Israeli soldiers: Gilad Shalit, Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev.
Diplomatic spats
The Turkish government's condemnation of the 2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict strained relations between the two countries. In December 1987, Turkey had already declared support for the Palestinians' right to self-determination. In 2004, Turkey had denounced Israeli assassination of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. It described Israeli policy in the Gaza Strip as "state-sponsored terrorism". There were demonstrations across Turkey against Israeli actions in Gaza.On 5 March 2009, the Israeli daily newspaper Haaretz reported that "secret reconciliation talks at the highest level" had been held to get the Israeli-Turkish relations back on track. This report was cited in the Turkish press.
On 11 October 2009, a military aerial exercise was to consist of Turkey, Israel, the United States, and Italy. However, Turkey barred Israel from the Anatolian Eagle military exercise.
In October 2009, following Turkey's banning Israel's participation in the Anatolian Eagle military exercise, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu objected to Turkey as a mediator, stating "Turkey can't be honest broker", between Syria and Israel.
Erdoğan harshly criticized Israel's conduct in Gaza at the World Economic Forum conference in Davos, Switzerland in January 2009. After the assembled audience applauded Peres, Erdoğan said: "I find it very sad that people applaud what you said. You killed people. And I think that it is very wrong." The moderator, Washington Post columnist David Ignatius asked Erdoğan to finish, saying that people needed to go to dinner. Erdoğan complained about the fact, that he was given 12 minutes to talk, whereas Peres talked for a duration of 25 minutes. Erdoğan then proceeded to leave the stage.
In October 2009, Ayrılık, a prime-time serial on Turkish state television channel TRT 1 featured fictionalized scenes of Israeli soldiers shooting Palestinian children and mistreating elderly Arabs. Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman criticized the program, and rebuked the Turkish Ambassador in front of assembled media. Lieberman subsequently apologized after Turkey threatened to withdraw its ambassador.
After Hamas leader Khaled Mashal paid an official visit to Turkey, relations began to cool off. In January 2010, Israel protested when an episode of the Turkish soap opera Valley of the Wolves depicted Israeli intelligence spying inside Turkey and kidnapping Turkish babies. The series depicted a fictional Mossad attack on the Turkish embassy in Tel Aviv in which the ambassador and his family are taken hostage. On 11 January 2010, Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon met with Turkish ambassador Ahmet Oğuz Çelikkol, who was seated on a stool that was lower than Ayalon's. Ayalon allegedly turned to his aide and quipped, "The main thing is that you see that he is seated low and that we are high... that there is one flag on the table and that we are not smiling."
Moshe Ya'alon, Israel's Minister of Strategic Affairs, accused Turkey of cooperating with Hamas and Iran. According to the Shin Bet, Hamas established a command post in Turkey and has used it to recruit operatives and oversee operations in the Middle East. David Ignatius has reported that in 2012, Turkey revealed the names of Mossad agents to Iran.