An Evaluation of Israel-USA Relations after October 7 in terms of the Concept of Neocolonialism

Year 2025, Volume: 25 Issue: 1, 23 - 38, 30.06.2025

Mustafa Canlı

https://doi.org/10.31456/beytulmakdis.1625346

Abstract

The current situation in Gaza and the unlimited US support for the Zionist state of Israel calls for a re-examination of the relationship between Israel and the US. Considering the allegations that US presidents, the Pentagon, senators, and representatives are heavily influenced by groups that support Israel, which wields all kinds of power and lobbying activities in the country, and Israel’s power over the US, the concept of neo-colonialism can explain this relationship. Neo-colonialism is a theory put forward by thinkers such as Kwame Nkrumah, Jean-Paul Sartre, and Vasily Vakhrushev during and after the Second World War, which claims that countries are no longer being exploited physically/military but in different and covert ways, and that the wave of independence after the Second World War was a delusion and planned. When we look at the main features of this theory, it can be said that the current relationship between Israel and the US has become a kind of new-generation colonialism. At this stage, when Israel and its lobbies are using the US covertly and confining it to the vision of the ‘promised land,’ making this known to the US media, academia, people, and public opinion, and revealing that what is happening is exploitation and use rather than a good relationship will increase the pressure on Israel and cause the US to approach the issue with more common sense and without fanaticism, and solutions will become possible. Based on the neocolonialism thesis, this article argues that the US has become Israel’s new-generation colony, that Gaza and other problems in the ‘Middle East’ are related to this, and that a solution is possible by presenting the situation to and convincing the already reactive US public opinion.

Keywords

Gaza, Israel, Neo-colonialism, USA, Lobbying

7 Ekim Olayları Sonrası İsrail-ABD İlişkilerinin Yeni Sömürgecilik Kavramı Işığında Değerlendirilmesi

Abstract

Gazze’deki mevcut durum, İsrail devletine ABD’nin sınırsız desteği İsrail ve ABD arasındaki ilişkinin yeniden sorgulanmasını gerektirmektedir. ABD başkanları, Pentagon, senatörler ve temsilcilerin ülke içerisinde her türlü güce sahip olduğu ve lobi faaliyetinde bulunan İsrail’e destek veren grupların ağır etkisi altında kaldığı iddiaları ve İsrail’in ABD üzerindeki bu denli gücü göz önüne alındığında, yeni sömürgecilik kavramı bu ilişkiyi açıklayabilir. Yeni sömürgecilik ikinci dünya savaşı sürecinde ve sonrasında Kwame Nkrumah, Jean-Paul Sartre ve Vasily Vakhrushev gibi düşünürler tarafından ortaya konulan ve ülkelerin artık fiziki/askeri olarak değil farklı ve üstü örtülü yollarla sömürüldüğünü, ikinci dünya savaşı sonrasındaki bağımsızlık dalgasının göz boyama ve planlı olarak gerçekleştiğini iddia eden bir teoridir. Bu teorinin temel özelliklerine baktığımızda günümüzdeki İsrail ile ABD ilişkisi bir çeşit yeni-nesil bir sömürgecilik haline geldiği dile getirilebilir. İsrail ve lobilerinin ABD’yi ‘vadedilmiş topraklar’ vizyonuna hapsettiği ve örtülü olarak kullandığı bu aşamada bunu ABD medyasına, akademisine, insanlarına ve kamuoyuna duyurmak ve yaşananların iyi bir ilişkiden çok sömürme ve kullanma olduğunun ortaya konulması İsrail üzerindeki baskının artırılmasına ve ABD’nin daha sağduyulu ve fanatizmden uzak olarak konuya yaklaşmasına sebep olacak ve çözümler konuşulabilir hale gelecektir. Bu makale yeni sömürgecilik tezinden hareketle, ABD’nin İsrail’in yeni-nesil sömürgesi haline geldiğini, Gazze ve diğer Ortadoğu’daki problemlerin de buna bağlı olduğunu, çözümün ise hali hazırda tepkili olan ABD kamuoyuna durumu arz etmek ve ikna etmek ile mümkün olabileceğini savunmaktadır. Bu metin, John J. Mearsheimer ve Stephen M. Walt tarafından 2006 yılında yayınlanan The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy adlı kitabın ve yeni sömürgecilik kavramının temel argümanları ışığında 7 Ekim Gazze olayları ve devamındaki İsrail-ABD ilişkilerine odaklanmaktadır.

Keywords

Gazze, İsrail, Yeni-sömürgecilik, ABD, Lobicilik

تقييم أحداث 7 أكتوبر والعلاقات الإسرائيلية-الأمريكية في ضوء مفهوم الاستعمار الجديد

Abstract

إن الوضع الحالي في غزة والدعم الأمريكي اللامحدود لدولة إسرائيل يستدعي إعادة النظر في العلاقة بين إسرائيل والولايات المتحدة. فبالنظر إلى الادعاءات التي تشير إلى خضوع رؤساء الولايات المتحدة والبنتاغون وأعضاء مجلس الشيوخ والنواب الأمريكيين لتأثير كبير من الجماعات الداعمة لإسرائيل، والتي تمتلك كل أنواع القوة وأنشطة الضغط في البلاد، ونفوذ إسرائيل على الولايات المتحدة، يمكن لمفهوم الاستعمار الجديد أن يفسر هذه العلاقة. والاستعمار الجديد هي نظرية طرحها مفكرون مثل كوامي نكروما وجان بول سارتر وفاسيلي فاخروشيف أثناء الحرب العالمية الثانية وبعدها، والتي تدعي أن الدول لم تعد تُستغل جسديًا/عسكريًا بل بطرق مختلفة وخفية، وأن موجة الاستقلال بعد الحرب العالمية الثانية كانت وهمًا ومخططًا لها. عندما ننظر إلى الملامح الأساسية لهذه النظرية، يمكن القول إن العلاقة الحالية بين إسرائيل والولايات المتحدة أصبحت نوعًا من الجيل الجديد من الاستعمار. وفي هذه المرحلة، عندما تحصر إسرائيل ولوبياتها الولايات المتحدة في رؤية ”أرض الميعاد“ وتستخدمها في الخفاء، فإن إظهار ذلك للإعلام والأكاديميين والشعب والرأي العام الأمريكي وإظهار أن ما يحدث هو استغلال واستخدام وليس علاقة جيدة سيزيد من الضغط على إسرائيل ويجعل الولايات المتحدة تتعامل مع القضية بمنطق أكثر عقلانية وبعيداً عن التعصب، وسيتم مناقشة الحلول. استناداً إلى أطروحة الاستعمار الجديد، يرى هذا المقال أن الولايات المتحدة أصبحت مستعمرة الجيل الجديد لإسرائيل، وأن غزة وغيرها من المشاكل في الشرق الأوسط مرتبطة بذلك، وأن الحل ممكن من خلال عرض الموقف وإقناع الرأي العام الأمريكي المنفعل أصلاً.

Keywords

غزة, إسرائيل, الاستعمار الجديد, الاستعمار الجديد, الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية, جماعات الضغط

References

• Akcan, I. (2024). Epstein case sheds light on dark secrets of influential figures. Anadolu Agency. https://www.aa.com.tr/en/americas/epstein-case-sheds-light-on-dark-secrets-of-influential-figures/3103146 (Erişim tarihi: 21.01.2024).
• Andrew, C. M. ve A. S. Kanya-Forstner (1981). France Overseas: The Great War and The Climax of French Imperial Expansion. Thames and Hudson: London.
• Armaoğlu, F. (2016). 20. Yüzyıl Siyasi Tarihi (1914-1995). Timaş: İstanbul.
• Ashcroft, B., G. Griffiths ve H. Tiffin (1995). The Post-colonial Studies Reader. Taylor & Francis: New York.
• Bairoch, P. (2006). The Economic Development of the Third World Since 1900. Routledge: New York.
• Barker, A. J (2012). “Locating settler colonialism.” Journal of Colonialism and Colonial History, Vol: 13, Issue: 3.
• Bauer, P. T. (1981). Equality, the Third World, and Economic Delusion. Harvard University Press, Cambridge: Massachusetts.
• Betts, R. (2004). Decolonization. Routledge: New York.
• Boyd-Barrett, O. (2015). Media Imperialism. Sage: Los Angeles. http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781473910805
• Brendon, P. (2010). The Decline and Fall of the British Empire, 1781-1997. Vintage: New York.
• Burımaso, A. (2014). Political Leadership Crisis in the Post-Colonial African States: The Case of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). [Doctoral Dissertation, University of Witwatersrand]. http://wiredspace.wits.ac.za/
• Canlı, M. (2023). Neo-Colonialism in Graham Greene’s Fiction. Kriter Yayınevi: İstanbul.
• Chadha, K. ve A. Kavoori (2000). Media Imperialism Revisited: Some Findings from the Asian Case. Media, Culture & Society, 22(4), 415-432. https://doi.org/10.1177/016344300022004003
• Chin, R. (2018). The Levant mandates and Charles De Gaulle’s provisional government: Power, culture, and Messages of imperial reform. European Review of History: 25(2), 312-329. https://doi.org/10.1080/13507486.2017.1409701
• Cooper, F. (2005). Colonialism in Question: Theory, Knowledge, History. University of California Press: Los Angeles.
• Darren, L. (2024). TIMELINE- Harvard University president steps down amid scrutiny over plagiarism and antisemitism. Anadolu Agency. https://www.aa.com.tr/en/americas/timeline-harvard-university-president-steps-down-amid-scrutiny-over-plagiarism-antisemitism/3099039#:~:text=Gay%20will%20be%20replaced%20by,the%20university%20finds%20a%20replacement. (Erişim tarihi: 20.01.2024).
• Deane, S., T. Eagleton, F. Jameson ve E. W. Said (1990). Nationalism, Colonialism, and Literature. University of Minnesota Press: Minneapolis.
• Domatob, J. (1988). Sub-Saharan Africa’s media and neo-colonialism. Africa Media Review. 3(1), 149-174. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12281808/
• Escobar, A. (1995). Encountering Development: The Making and Unmaking of the Third World. Princeton: Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt7rtgw
• Ferro, M. (1997). Colonization: A Global History. New York: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203992586
• Frankel, M. (1999). The Times of My Life And My Life with the Times. NY: Random House, pp. 401‐403.
• Fuchs, C. (2010). New Imperialism. Global Media and Communication. 6 (1), 33-60. https://doi.org/10.1177/1742766510362018
• Griffiths, A. (2015). The New Journalism, the New Imperialism and the Fiction of Empire, 1870-1900. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
• Halpert, M. (2023). Blinken emphasises ‘deep commitment’ to Israel after talks. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-67124831
• Happer, C. ve G. Philo (2013). The role of the media in the construction of public belief and social change. Journal of Social and Political Psychology, 1(1), 321-336. https://doi.org/10.5964/jspp.v1i1.96
• Huhtinen, A. M. ve J. Rantapelkonen (2003). Perception management in the art of war: A review of Finnish war propaganda and present-day information warfare. Journal of Information Warfare, 2(1), 243-255. https://www.jstor.org/stable/26486889?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents
• Keeton, P. ve P. Scheckner (2013). American War Cinema and Media Since Vietnam: Politics, Ideology, and Class. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
• Kennedy, D. K. (2016). Decolonization: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford Uni Press: Oxford. https://doi.org/10.1093/actrade/9780199340491.001.0001
• Mearsheimer, J. J. ve S. M. Walt (2006). “The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy,” Middle East Policy, Vol: XIII, Issue: 3. pp. 1-59.
• Loomba, A. (2015). Colonialism/Postcolonialism. 2nd ed. London: Routledge.
• McChesney, R. W. (2001). Global Media, Neoliberalism, and Imperialism. Monthly Review-New York, 52(10), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.14452/MR-052-10-2001-03_1
• McIntyre, D. (1998). British Decolonization, 1946–1997: When, why and how did the British Empire fall? London: Macmillan.
• Mehmet, Ö. (2018). 3. Dünya’nın Batılılaştırılması. Açılımkitap: İstanbul.
• Memmi, A. (2013). The Colonizer and the Colonized. London: Routledge.
• Mirrlees, T. (2013). Global Entertainment Media: Between Cultural Imperialism and Cultural Globalization. New York: Routledge.
• Mosime, S. T. (2015). Media control, colonialism and the making of an authoritarian postcolonial African state: The case of Botswana. African Journalism Studies, 36(2), 45-58. https://doi.org/10.1080/23743670.2015.1043691
• Mwaura, N. (2005). Kenya Today: Breaking the Yoke of Colonialism in Africa. New York: Algora Publishing.
• Nkrumah, K. (1965). Neo-colonialism: The Last Stage of Imperialism. New York: International Publishers.
• Nzau, M. (2011). On political leadership and development in Africa: A case study of Kenya. Kenya Studies Review, 3(3), 87-111. https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.454.376&rep=rep1&type=pdf
• Pierce, D. (2009). Decolonization and the Collapse of the British Empire. Inquiries Journal, 1(10). http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/articles/5/decolonization-and-the-collapse-of-the-british-empire
• Poole, E. A. (1999). British Islam: Media Representations and Social Meanings. [Doctoral thesis, University of Leicester]. https://leicester.figshare.com/articles/thesis/British_Islam_media_representations_and_social_meanings/10132748/1
• Quayson, A. (2000). Postcolonialism: Theory, Practice, or Process? Cambridge: Polity Press.
• Reuters. (2019). Amid criticism, Trump signs order targeting anti-Semitism at universities. REUTERS. https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN1YG07Y/ (Erişim tarihi: 20.01.2024).
• Reuters. (2023). Biden says he has ‘no confidence’ in Palestinian death count. REUTERS. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/biden-says-he-has-no-confidence-palestinian-death-count-2023-10-26/ (Erişim tarihi: 20.01.2024).
• Roshwald, A. (2002). Ethnic Nationalism and the Fall of Empires: Central Europe, the Middle East and Russia, 1914-23. London: Routledge.
• Said, E. (1978). Orientalism. London: Vintage.
• Sartre, J. P. (1964). Colonialism and Neo-colonialism. London: Routledge
• Spetalnick, M. (2023). ‘I am a Zionist’: How Joe Biden’s lifelong bond with Israel shapes war policy. REUTERS. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/i-am-zionist-how-joe-bidens-lifelong-bond-with-israel-shapes-war-policy-2023-10-21/ (Erişim tarihi: 20.01.2024).
• Stoler, A. L. (2002). Colonial Archives and the Arts of Governance. Archival Science, 2(1-2), 87-109. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02435632
• TRT WORLD (2018). 5 ways the CIA overthrows governments. TRT WORLD. Video. https://www.facebook.com/trtworld/videos/2085059231764222/ (Erişim tarihi: 21.01.2024)
• Tunstall, J. (1977). The Media are American. New York: Columbia University Press.
• Vakhrushev, V. (1973). Neocolonialism: Methods and Manoeuvres. Moscow: Progress Publishing.
• Wa Thiong’o, N. (1981). Writers in Politics: Essays. London: Heinemann.
• White, B. (2002). Britain, Détente and Changing East-West Relations. London:Routledge.
• Young, R. J. C. (2001). Sartre: the African Philosopher. Preface to J. P. Sartre’s Colonialism and neo-colonialism. London: Routledge.
• Zengerle, P. ve R. Rampton (2015). U.S. Congress invites Netanyahu for Iran speech, Obama blindsided. REUTERS. https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN0KU1TG/ (Erişim tarihi: 20.01.2024).