CHANGE OF STYLE

The government’s style on Israel is tougher now. Particularly Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s latest statements blaming the Sharon administration could signal a change in Ankara’s stance. Another signal is Erdogan’s declining to visit Israel under the current circumstances. Officials I spoke with yesterday stated that Ankara felt the obligation to take a clear stand against the recent Israeli attacks and so had raised its ‘volume,’ but that this shouldn’t be perceived as a basic policy shift. One high-ranking diplomat stated that Ankara had no intention of decreasing or ending its relations with Israel as Turkish diplomacy continues to act not emotionally, but reasonably and realistically on the issue.

* Diplomatic and political relations are continuing just as in the past. The latest Foreign Ministry statements show clearly that the level of diplomatic representation won’t be decreased and our ambassador to Tel Aviv won’t be recalled.

* Turkey’s military cooperation with Israel, including its modernization program, is continuing. In addition, new defense projects will be evaluated under the government’s new bid policy. This is a general policy and doesn’t target Turkish-Israeli ties.

* Economic and commercial relations with Israel are continuing in the same way as well. The signing of an $800 million contract between Zorlu Holding and Israel’s Jorad Energies is the latest example of this.

Criticizing the Sharon administration in Turkey and other countries and supporting the Palestinian nation is both natural and necessary. As Parliament Foreign Affairs Commission head Mehmet Dulger told TRT yesterday, ‘Turkey is a strong actor in the region and its voice has weight. Ankara isn’t taking sides in this conflict, but its words are important.’ Dulger believes Turkey should act carefully and consider its interests realistically on the issue. Actually our policy should seize the opportunity to get involved in the issue to put an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The G-8 summit and then the Organization for the Islamic Conference (OIO) and NATO meetings in Istanbul will set an ideal atmosphere for such an initiative. It’s a difficult mission, but worth trying.”