FUTURE SCENARIOS OF TURKISH- ISRAELI RELATIONS UNDER AKP (2002-2016)
Abstract
The historical development of relations
between Turkey and Israel, including the recent changes wrought by the AKP,
show that Turkey’s stance regarding Israel is driven by a mix of religious
ideology and political expediency. In the early relationship between the two
countries, although they experienced periods of stress, they managed to forge a
strong relationship based on the mutual military and economic benefits of their
relations. However, the rise of Islamist political parties in Turkey, including
the NSP and the Welfare and Virtue Parties, directly harmed Turkey’s relations
with Israel while simultaneously strengthening Turkey’s ties with Arab nations
and Hamas. The current party in power, the AKP, is a continuation of Islamist
parties that were previously banned, and the AKP’s initial promises of reform
were misleading, perhaps to reduce the chances of its being removed from power
by the Turkish military, a strong defender of Turkey as a secular State. With
Erdogan’s 2014 presidential election victory, he has gained a chance to tighten
both his and the AKP’s grip on Turkish politics, an outcome that makes the
future of Turkish-Israeli relations even more tenuous.
Keywords
References
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Details
Primary Language
English
Subjects
-
Journal Section
Research Article
Authors
Rasha Mahmoud El Sayed Eid El Baz
Egypt
Publication Date
August 31, 2017
Submission Date
September 17, 2017
Acceptance Date
July 21, 2017
Published in Issue
Year 2017 Volume: 3 Number: 8