Turkey: the storm passes

by Peter Lyukimson, Israel. Exclusively for VK

The history of Jewish-Turkish relations started in the Medieval Age. It is obviously unique and affected the modern history of Israeli-Turkish relations. Back then, Israelis only dreamed about building a national state and Zionists had a schism over attitudes towards Turkey. Ze'ev Zhabotinsky viewed the UK and Antanta as allies in achieving the goal. The first Prime Minister of Israel, David Ben-Gurion, was confident in the 1910s that emphasis should be placed on support for the Ottoman Empire.

During his childhood, Ben-Gurion and his friend, President of Israel Yitzhak Ben Zvi, studied at the Istanbul University and considered joining the Turkish army. After WWI, Ben-Gurion gained more confidence in his views. He considered Ataturk a true national leader of a new type and his country as a model of the new Jewish state: advanced, secular, oriented towards the West, while preserving its national and religious identity. The Jerusalem Academic Collection of 1941 entitled "Turkey: History, State Policy, Society and Economy" contained Ben-Gurion's words: "Turkey is the greatest, most progressive and independent state in the Middle East today. The founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, turned the political catastrophe of the Ottoman Empire after World War I into a source of power, national restoration and revival. On the ruins of an empire, he built a new Turkish nation, full of strength and energy, moving towards progress... Today, there is no state comparable with the value of Turkey from the coast of the Mediterranean Sea to the borders of India. The economic weight of Turkey, its value for the region grows all the time. The Jewish people that had returned to their land and dreamt about own their state, continues improving new cultural, economic and other ties with neighbours, must understand the place Turkey will take in the ties in the future".

From Ataturk to Erdogan

In 1948, Turkey became the first Muslims state to recognize the new Israeli state. In 1949, Turkish Vice Premier Nihat Erim came up with an idea of a military-economic alliance, a confederation of Turkey, Greece and Israel to oppose the plans of the USSR and Arab states to add the Middle East to their sphere of influence. Many Turkish intellectuals wrote then that many viewed the union of Israel and Turkey as a counter-weight for the imperial plans of Egypt and Syria.

Rapprochement of the states in the late 1940s and early 1950s turned into cooling relations. Israel called Jerusalem its unseparable capital in 1980, making relations even more tense. Turkey called its consul from Jerusalem and the diplomatic relations dropped to a level of second assistant ambassador in Tel Aviv.

Israel and Turkey started new rapprochement in 1992, during the Gulf War in Iraq, after noticing the numerous enemies around and common interests. Rapprochement turned into a strong and close alliance and it seemed as though the plans of Ben-Gurion to build an Israeli-Turkish alliance were becoming a reality.
Israel provided Turkey with full support in the US and other states to protect it from recognition of the Armenian Genocide of 1915 and started providing Turkey with advanced weapons. Turkey, in exchange, positioned itself as a military ally of Israel, held joined ground and naval drills and cooperated with the Jewish state in all counter-terrorism issues. Mutual exchange of military and governmental delegations of Turkey and Israel and mutual visits of high-ranking officials of both states were so intense and regular that they turned into a routine worth dozens of lines, although no headlines.

Even when the Justice and Development Party of Recep Tayyip Erdogan came to power, stressing the strengthening of Islamic self-identification of the nation and state, Israel remained confident that relations between the two states were so close and their strategic value so great that nothing could threaten it. Israeli analysts said back then that the "Muslim vector" of Erdogan was very different from the vector of Iran or Saudi Arabia, resembling a more democratic and tolerant version of Islam. Erdogan and his supporters avoided anti-Israeli and anti-Semitic statements, emphasizing the importance of preserving
multi-sided ties with Israel. The best example proving the old policy of Ankara towards Jerusalem is the visit of Erdogan to Israel.

Meanwhile, the domestic policy of Turkey kept getting more evident reflections of Erdogan's personality and biography. On the one hand, he was the creator of and speaker of public mood, but on the other, his charisma made him their main augmentor and symbol.

Erdogan was born in an area of poverty. He graduated at a religious school and was viewed as a "representative of common people". He spent some years in jail for radical verses before coming to power:

Mosques are the military bases of ours,
Domes of mosques are the helmets of ours,
Minarets are the missiles of ours,
Worshippers are the soldiers of ours!

Tensions between the new government and the military escalated with the coming of Erdogan to power in 2003. The military were considered the main guarantor of secular statehood and the main "pro-Israeli" power in the society.The Turkish military experienced similar reshuffles as in 1937. Hundreds of officers, including some of the highest-ranking ones, were accused of planning a coup. At the same time, the new government started weakening various secular institutions and strengthening the religious ones. At least 1500 new mosques were were opening every year, a lot more than medical or religious facilities. The number of charity and public Islamic organizations relying on state support grew. Polls showed that Turkish religiousness was gaining momentum.

The process was not only common among low-income and illiterate people, but among medium and high classes as well.

The role of clerics and leaders of Islamic organizations in political spheres of the country grew. Their links with the government were guiding the Turkish movement towards more radical Islamic branches. Many Turkish Islamic organizations, religious leaders and public figures did not want a fundamental state, they feared such tendencies. The population was more into a tolerant model of Islam, but it was too late then. The unleashed forces are becoming less and less obedient.

The radical Islamic organization of IHH, considered terrorist in the USA and EU, is a peculiar example. It organized the Free Gaza Flotilla. Its militants were the ones attacking Israeli troops at the Mavi Marmara ship. Before the flotilla entered the sea, Israel made numerous requests to stop the provocation, but they did not help. Moreover, Erdogan expressed solidarity towards organizers of the flotilla and offered support. In mid-June, when Turkish intelligence services started suspecting that IHH had links with Al Qaeda and was about to call the Turkish government "pro-Zionist", a criminal case was initiated against one of its leaders.

The image of an enemy

The dream Recep Tayyip Erdogan has is generally clear: he wants to return the old glory of Turkey, even if it has to be in another form. He wants his country to become the regional leader and leader of the Muslim world. In his searches for instruments to achieve the goal, Erdogan called for the need to strengthen positions of Islam all over the world and boost anti-Israeli moods. It did not happen immediately. Erdogan was acting cautiously in his first years of power, studying the possible military and economic losses his anti-Semitic outbursts could cause. Finally, at a conference in Davos in 2010, he made outrageous statements against Israeli President Shimon Peres. Popularity of Erdogan rose all over the Muslim world.

Polls in 5 Arab states showed that Erdogan was viewed as the world's Muslim leader. Polls among Palestinians in Gaza, Judaea and Samaria showed that 43% of their population considered Turkey the best supporter of Palestine against Israel. Alquds Alarabi called Erdogan "more Arabic than Arabs themselves".

Strives for return of "past glory" have become more common since then. Ordinary Turks associate it with the times before Ataturk, the Ottoman Empire. These moods called "neo-ottomanism" implemented into the conscience of Turks and mass culture. A blockbuster called "Capture 1453" released in March this year depicts the fall of Constantinople, $17 million was spent on filming, the biggest film budget Turkey ever had.

Erdogan praised the film before it was released. 3.4 million people watched it on the first day. Besides neo-ottomanism, Turkey is experiencing growing anti-Israeli and anti-Semitic tendencies to consolidate the population around a dangerous and merciless enemy. One way to do it is publishing the Protocols of the Elders of Zion and Hitler's Mein Kampf.

Another way is publications of local anti-Semitic works about Jewish conspiracy, Zionists strive for world domination. Some authors call the current government pro-Zionist and Recep Tayyip Erdogan the "Jewish protege". The government does nothing to stop publications of false and hateful literature. Another example of anti-Jewish propaganda is the Turkish cinema. Israeli specialists believe that the "Valley of Wolves"series is symbolic. It somewhat a Turkish version of James Bond. Its protagonist is a Turkish intelligence officer Ali Kandran fighting against Turkish drug smugglers. He can be seen at a camp of Kurdish militants and in Iraq.

The film also depicts a Jewish doctor removing the organs of Iraqis and sending them to hospitals in Tel Aviv and New York. It turns out later in the film that the doctor was under the protection of Mossad, kidnapping Turkish babies. Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Dani Ayalon summoned the Turkish ambassador to explain Israel's compalints over the film. Turks did not forgive the offenses of their diplomat. Turkish outrage is justified, because the film was made by a private company and received no state subsidies. The film has a sequel "Valley of Wolves - Palestine" with over 400 people in the cast. It was obviously filmed under state support. The protagonist is ordered to eliminate Israeli generals that killed tens of thousands of Palestinians in the Cast Lead Operation (in reality, over 500 people were killed in the operation, most of them were armed terrorists. Several dozens of civilians were used as shields by the terrorists or accidently killed by Israeli troops). The film is considered false and provocative towards the US, Germany and a set of other states. It was banned right after its release, although its makers made millions. This could have been neglected, if it were not for the German example of the 1920-1930s, when mass culture and media were used to form the public view. Formation of social and national myths in Turkey is active.

Return to the "conspiracy theory"

The theory of Jewish conspiracy thretaning Turkey and the Islamic world in modern Turkey is not based on fears of Israeli secret agents and Jews living in Turkey. The hysteria is caused by Donmeh, a sect of the 17th century considering Sabbatai Zevi the long-awaited Messiah. His offspring were indeed high-ranking officials in the Ottoman Empire at various periods of history, playing an important role in culture, art, politics, science and economy. Ethnographists say that Donmeh dissolved in the Turkish population in the 1950s and collapsed before 1970. Turkish media called it the main enemy in 2010. They say that the sect caused the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and Ataturk was part of the organization. Another version says that Donmeh caused the collapse of Necmettin Erbakan's government in 1997.

Not a single week passes without some Turkish paper warning readers about Donmeh continuing its activity as an agent of Israel and the US to tear Turkey apart and build the "Great israel from sea to sea", turning all Turks into slaves for Jews. How can 5 million Jews turn 60 million Turks and a billion of Arabs into slaves remains a mystery. Donmeh, as Turkish papers say, dreams about harming the Turkish economy and security, listening to everyone's telephone conversations, splitting Turkish provinces and adding them to Israel to solve the water problem. Mehmet Sakat Ayagi, one of the most confirmed anti-Semitic activists of Turkey, published works in 2005, called "Protocols of the "Red" (Donmeh members are called "red Turks"). The "document" says that Turkish Jews are "trying to part Turkish women from Islamic culture, promote wearing bikinis and removing purdahs" and so on.

In other words, the situation modern Turkey resembles what was happening in Germany before nazis came to power and in the first years of their government. Israeli analysts say that Islamization is a strategic choice of Turkey and no normalization of ties should be expected in the near future. A well-known specialist for Turkey and author of numerous books about Turkish history Danil Sifer believes that Israel needs to take the following political realities into account in order to improve ties with Turkey:

- Turkey will turn into a stronghold of fundamentalist Islamc only if a more radical and charismatic leader than Recep Tayyip Erdogan comes to power to give more freedom of Islamic propaganda and convince Turkey to take that path. No such leader can be seen so far, which means that such developments are not dangerous. Turkey will never turn into Iran, because Turks are more pragmatic and even religious Turks have a "limit of fundamentalism" they cannot cross.

- Despite the common feeling and views of analysts of the Israeli Foreign Ministry, the current anti-Semitic hysteria in Turkey is tactical, not strategic.

- As a result of historic, geopolitical and other reasons, Turkey will never become an ally of Arab states and Iran.

- Whatever Turkish leaders say today, they understand that a return to the empire is impossible. Neo-ottomanism wants existential domination in former Turkish-speaking republics of the USSR, not physical. Turkey will continue the struggle for influence in Azerbaijan.

- Although it is not official, Turkey fears mass recognition of the Armenian Genocide of 1915 and territorial claims towards Ankara supported by Russia.

- Relations with Turkey are still strategic for Israel. If they cannot improve, they will be saved from worsening. Thus, Israel should not support Kurdish separatists and recognize the genocide.

- At the same time searches for the normalization of ties between Israel and Turkey should continue even if it takes a minor sacrifice of principles.