"Azerbaijan, Türkiye and Israel should establish a tripartite alliance"  Expert opinions on Caliber.Az

On December 27, Irit Lillian, the Ambassador of Israel to Ankara, presented her credentials to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. A month earlier, the Turkish leader had signed an order appointing Shakir Ozkan Torunlar as ambassador to Israel. The decision to restore diplomatic relations and to appoint ambassadors after a four-year hiatus was made by the two states back in mid-August 2022.

Since 2021, the two sides have been gradually warming relations. For example, Erdogan called Herzog to congratulate him on his election as president, after which Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett spoke to the Turkish leader, thanking him for releasing two Israeli tourists detained in Türkiye on suspicion of espionage. Turkey and Israel have decided to leave old grudges behind and restore diplomatic relations that were broken off several years ago.

In this regard, Caliber.Az contacted Sait Yilmaz, an expert on international security, intelligence and defence, a professor at the Department of Political Science and International Relations of Esenyurt University, and Mark Gorin, an Israeli political scientist and editor-in-chief of the Russian-language Israeli TV channel AVIV.

Sait Yilmaz noted that the restoration of diplomatic relations between Türkiye and Israel is definitely a positive factor.

"Türkiye and Israel have traditionally cooperated on important issues such as defence and intelligence. Among other things, Israel can play an important role in Türkiye's relations with the United States. There is also a proper basis for cooperation between Türkiye and Israel in regard to Ukraine, Iran, and Karabakh. The Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean regions also require the improvement of bilateral relations," Sait Yilmaz said.

For his part, Mark Gorin said the rapprochement between Turkey and Israel was not just a positive factor.

"Israel has established diplomatic relations with many countries, but relations with Türkiye are of particular importance to it. For Türkiye, the relationship is also important on a number of issues. The fact that our countries have not had diplomatic relations for a long time, I thought, was totally unfair and generally an anomalous fact. The Turkish and Israeli peoples have a great history. Türkiye welcomed the Jews when they were expelled from Spain. It received them very well. Türkiye simply saved the Israeli people from wandering.

If we talk about today, we have had a great relationship in many areas for many years. Economic and military-technical relations have been at a high level. These ties were important for our countries in this turbulent world, especially in our region.

Another factor for rapprochement was the hostile relations of Israel with Iran. They imply friendship with such a major and authoritative power in the region, in the Turkic and Muslim world, as Türkiye," he believes.

According to Gorin, the change of the Israeli Prime Minister is unlikely to affect relations with Ankara.

"Of course, no one can give guarantees, we are all human beings, but Binyamin Netanyahu, who will soon be prime minister, was the initiator of rapprochement with Türkiye. Generally speaking, it was the right-wing leader of Netanyahu who was behind the rapprochement with Türkiye, the UAE, Morocco, and Bahrain. At the same time, I can admit that some unpleasant moments between Israel and Palestine may affect bilateral relations with Ankara, given Erdogan's more attentive attitude to the Muslim world. Nevertheless, even among the best of friends some disputes may arise. We will have to discuss, meet and talk," the Israeli expert stressed.

He went on to remind about Israeli Defence Minister Beni Gantz's visit to Türkiye.

"Beni Gantz met his Turkish counterpart Hulusi Akar. He was then invited to the meeting by Erdogan. Beni Ganz and the Turkish president talked for more than an hour. And most importantly, it was an unplanned meeting. This, too, is considered an indicator of good relations," Gorin said.

Our interlocutor touched upon the role of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in eliminating the tension between Israel and Türkiye.

"Among other things, the initiative of Ilham Aliyev brought Baku to a new level of international authority. He undertook to bring the countries, which at the time were hardly friendly, closer together. And today's improvements largely come from the policy of Ilham Aliyev, today we reap the benefits of this initiative," Gorin noted.

He concluded by expressing confidence that Türkiye, Israel, and Azerbaijan must establish a tripartite alliance.

"What can be better than such friendship for all three countries? There are so many points of contact between our countries. Israel has something to say in the military-technical, and medical fields, Azerbaijan has extensive energy capabilities, and Türkiye is a central power in our region, a great authority in the Muslim world.

I am confident that the opening of an Azerbaijani embassy in Israel will contribute to further strengthening and efficiency of relations between our countries. By the way, Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Fariz Rzayev arrived in Israel today, December 29. The agenda of the visit includes the opening of Azerbaijan's embassy in Israel. This is a very significant event for Israelis, and for the natives of Azerbaijan it is very long-awaited news," Gorin summed up.