Analysing the Role of Turkey in Israel’s Post-2011 Regional Vision through the Lens of Identity-Security: Challenger or Bystander?

Öz

Turkey’s engagement in Middle Eastern politics, significantly since the Arab Uprising, has continuously changed the direction of decades-old Turkey–Israel relations. The existing literature elaborates on several aspects of destabilising or normalizing relations between these two countries, but the dimension of Israel’s identity-based threat perception is yet to be revealed, despite Israel having long tried to balance identities in the region. By asking whether Turkey challenges Israel’s identity-based regional vision or plays a bystander role, this study presents a two-layered analysis of Israel–Turkey relations. While discussing the cognitive essence of Israel’s post-2011 regional perspective that transformed the ‘identity-based threat’ perceptions in an uncertain environment, it locates Turkey’s engagement in the region into Israel's regional understanding. Within this aim, the paper is organized as follows. First, the current literature on Israel–Turkey relations is summarized to see not only the short history of relations but also the major trends in studying Israel–Turkey relations. Second, the changing threat perceptions of Israel after the Arab Uprisings are examined to identify the continuities and changes. The third part locates Turkey in Israel’s regional vision by discussing the Egyptian and Syrian experiences of the Arab Uprisings. In the final part, the commitment policies of regional actors regarding the Palestinian issue are comparatively analysed to make sense of Israeli normalization with the Gulf States and re-normalization with Turkey. By going beyond the challenger/bystander spectrum, this study claims that Turkey’s position in all cases shows the characteristics of the ‘disobedient bystander’.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Israel
• Identity-Security
• Arab Uprising
• Normalization
• Crisis

İsrail’in 2011 Sonrası Bölgesel Vizyonunda Türkiye’nin Konumunun Kimlik-Güvenlik Penceresinden Analizi: Meydan Okuyucu Mu Yoksa Seyirci Mi?

Öz

Türkiye’nin özellikle Arap Baharıyla beraber Orta Doğu siyasetine artan katılımı on yıllarca süren Türkiye–İsrail ilişkilerinin gidişatını sürekli bir şekilde değiştirmeye devam etmektedir. Mevcut literatür bu iki ülke arasındaki ilişkilerin istikrarını bozan ya da normalleştiren pek çok özelliğini detaylıca ele almakta fakat İsrail’in çok uzun süredir bölgede kimlikleri dengeleme çabasında olmasına karşın, İsrail’in kimlik bazlı tehdit anlayışı boyutu henüz açığa çıkarılmamaktadır. Bu çalışma, Türkiye’nin İsrail’in kimlik odaklı bölgesel vizyonuna bir meydan okuma mı yarattığı yoksa seyirci mi kaldığını sorarak İsrail-Türkiye ilişkilerine iki katmanlı bir analiz getirmektedir. İsrail’in 2011 sonrası belirsizlik içeren ortamında bölgesel perspektifinin ‘kimlik odaklı tehdit’ algılarının dönüştüren bilişsel özü tartışılırken aynı zamanda Türkiye’nin bölgeye angajmanını İsrail’in bölgesel anlayışı içerisinde konumlandırmaktadır. Bu amaçla, makale şu şekilde organize edilmiştir. İlk olarak İsrail– Türkiye ilişkileri literatürü yalnızca ikili ilişkilerin kısa tarihini değil aynı zamanda İsrail– Türkiye ilişkileri çalışmalarındaki temel eğilimleri görmek için de özetlenmektedir. İkinci olarak, İsrail’in Arap Baharı sonrası değişen tehdit anlayışları süreklilikleri ve değişiklikleri görmek için ele alınmaktadır. Üçüncü bölüm Arap Baharı’nın Mısır ve Suriye deneyimlerini tartışarak, Türkiye’yi İsrail’in bölge vizyonu içerisinde konumlandırmaktadır. Son bölümde ise Filistin meselesi üzerinden bölgesel aktörlerin bağlılık siyasetleri, İsrail’in Körfez devletleriyle normalleşmesi ve Türkiye ile yeniden normalleşmesini anlamlandırmak için karşılaştırmalı olarak analiz edilmektedir. Meydan okuyucu/seyirci kalma izgesinin ötesine geçerek bu çalışma Türkiye’nin tüm bu vakalarda ‘zorlayıcı seyirci’ özelliklerini gösterdiğini iddia etmektedir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• İsrail
• Kimlik- Güvenlik
• Arap Ayaklanmaları
• Normalleşme
• Kriz

Kaynakça

1. Abadi, J. (1995). Israel and Turkey: From Covert to Overt Relations. Journal of Conflict Studies, 15(2), 0-0. Erişim adresi: https://journals.lib.unb.ca/index.php/JCS/article/view/454
2. Ahmadian, H. and Mohseni, P. (2019). Iran’s Syria strategy: The evolution of deterrence. International Affairs, 95(2), 341–364. doi:10.1093/ia/iiy271
3. Ahren, R. (2012). Protesting Israel’s Gaza operation, Egypt withdraws ambassador from Tel Aviv. The Times of Israel. Nov 14. Erişim adresi: https://www.timesofisrael.com/protesting-israels-gaza-operation-egypt-to-withdraw-ambassador-from-tel-aviv/.
4. al-Otaiba, Y. (2020). Annexation or Normalization. Yedioth Ahronot. June 12. Erişim adresi: https://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-5746959,00.html
5. Albayrak, D. O. and Turan, K. (2016). Neo-Ottomanism in Turkish foreign policy through the lenses of the principal-agent theory. Journal of Security, Strategy and Political Studies, 1(1), 129–154. Erişim adresi: https://m.moam.info/neo-ottomanism-in-turkish-foreign-policy-through-_5a58ba391723ddd5068068dc.html
6. Altunisik, M. (2000). The Turkish-Israeli Rapprochement in the Post-Cold War Era. Middle Eastern Studies, 36(2), 172–191. Erişim adresi: https://www.jstor.org/stable/4284076.
7. Altunisik, M. and Cuhadar, E. (2010). Turkey’s Search for a Third Party Role in Arab–Israeli Conflicts: A Neutral Facilitator or a Principal Power Mediator? Mediterranean Politics, 15(3), 371–392. doi:10.1080/13629395.2010.517101
8. Alyanak, O. (2010). TPQ Roundtable: Turkey and Israel- Old Friends, New Enemies? Turkish Policy Quarterly, 8(4), 153–160. Erişim adresi: http://turkishpolicy.com/article/717/tpq-roundtable-turkey-and-israel-old-friends-new-enemies

9. Atmaca, A. Ö. and Torun, Z. (2021). Geopolitical Visions in Turkish Foreign Policy. Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies, 24(1), 114-137. doi:10.1080/19448953.2021.1992189
10. Avan, E. A. (2019). Europeanization of Turkey’s Foreign Policy: The Case of Turkey’s Mediation in the Israel–Palestine Conflict. Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies, 21(6), 678–695. doi:10.1080/19448953.2018.1506294
11. Aytürk, İ. (2011). The Coming of an Ice Age? Turkish–Israeli Relations Since 2002. Turkish Studies, 12(4), 675–687. doi:10.1080/14683849.2011.622507
12. Barnett, M. (1999). Culture, Strategy and Foreign Policy Change: Israel’s Road to Oslo. European Journal of International Relations, 5(1), 5–36. doi:10.1177/1354066199005001001
13. Bartov, O. (1998). Defining Enemies, Making Victims: Germans, Jews, and the Holocaust. The American Historical Review, 103(3), 771–816. doi:10.2307/2650572
14. Bassist, R. (2022). Visiting Israel, Turkish foreign minister rehabilitates bilateral ties. Al Monitor. May 25. Erişim adresi: https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2022/05/visiting-israel-turkish-foreign-minister-rehabilitates-bilateral-ties
15. Belder, F. (2020, November). Is Annexation Evitable in the Long Run? Gulf States’ ‘Settlements’ Dilemma. Paper presented in V. Middle East Congress on Politics and Society, Sakarya, Türkiye, 106–118. Erişim adresi: https://middleeastcongress.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/V.-MIDDLE-EAST-CONGRESS-ON-POLITICS-AND-SOCIETY-PROCEEDINGS-BOOK-2020.pdf
16. Berenskoetter, F. (2014). Parameters of a national biography. European Journal of International Relations, 20(1), 262–288. doi:10.1177/1354066112445290
17. Berman, L. (2022, May 25). Israeli, Turkish FMs announce next steps to warm ties, but no mention of envoy swap. The Times of Israel. May 25. Erişim adresi: https://www.timesofisrael.com/lapid-cavusoglu-announce-next-steps-in-rapprochement-but-no-mention-of-envoy-swap/.
18. Bolukbasi, S. (1999). Behind the Turkish-Israeli Alliance: A Turkish View. Journal of Palestine Studies, 29(1), 21–35. doi:10.2307/2676428
19. Byman, D. (2011). Israel’s Pessimistic View of the Arab Spring. Brookings. June 27. Erişim adresi: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/israels-pessimistic-view-of-the-arab-spring/
20. Campbell, D. (1998). Writing Security: United States Foreign Policy and the Politics of Identity. Minnesota: University of Minnesota Press.
21. Ceylan, T. E. (2021). Israel and Turkey: Once Comrades Now Frenemies. Contemporary Review of the Middle East, 8(3), 338–355. doi:10.1177/23477989211019822
22. Çiçekçi, C. (2019). Paryanın Hegemonyası: Arap Baharı Prizmasından İsrail’in Ortadoğu Politikaları. In T. Oğuzlu and C. Çiçekçi (Eds.), Küresel ve Bölgesel Güçlerin Ortadoğu Politikaları. Ankara: Nobel Akademik Yayıncılık.
23. CNN Türk. (2012). Meşal, Barzani ve Mursi’den mesaj. CNN TÜRK, Sep 30, Erişim adresi: https://www.cnnturk.com/2012/turkiye/09/30/mesal.barzani.ve.mursiden.mesaj/678668.0/index.html.
24. Cohen, M. S. and Freilich, C. D. (2014). Breakdown and Possible Restart: Turkish-Israeli Relations Under the AKP. Israel Journal of Foregin Affairs, 8(1), 39- 55. Erişim adresi: https://www.academia.edu/19152206/Breakdown_and_Possible_Restart_Turkish_Israeli_Relations_under_the_AKP
25. Efron, S. (2018). The Future of Israeli-Turkish Relations. Rand Corporation. Erişim adresi: https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/research_reports/RR2400/RR2445/RAND_RR2445.pdf
26. Eligür, B. (2012). Crisis in Turkish–Israeli Relations (December 2008–June 2011): From Partnership to Enmity. Middle Eastern Studies, 48(3), 429–459. h doi:10.1080/00263206.2012.662893
27. Friedman, R. (2013). Egypt’s Morsi, in 2010 interviews posted online, called Zionists ‘bloodsuckers’ and descendants of pigs, urged to sever all ties with Israel. The Times of Israel. Jan 4. Erişim adresi: http://www.timesofisrael.com/egypts-morsi-in-2010-statements-posted-online-called-zionists-bloodsuckers-and-descendants-of-pigs-urged-to-sever-all-ties-with-israel/
28. Geist Pinfold, R. and Peters, J. (2021). The limits of Israel’s periphery doctrine: Lessons from the Caucasus and Central Asia. Mediterranean Politics, 26(1), 25–49. doi:10.1080/13629395.2019.1693125
29. Gutwein, D. (2009). The Privatization of the Holocaust: Memory, Historiography, and Politics. Israel Studies, 14(1), 36–64. Erişim adresi: http://www.jstor.org/stable/30245843
30. Guzansky, Y. (2014). Israel’s Periphery Doctrine 2.0: The Mediterranean Plus. Mediterranean Politics, 19(1), 99–116. doi:10.1080/13629395.2013.870365
31. Guzansky, Y. (2021). Israel’s Periphery Doctrines: Then and Now. Middle East Policy, 28(3–4), 88–100. doi:10.1111/mepo.12579
32. Huber, D. and Tocci, N. (2013). Behind the Scenes of the Turkish-Israeli Breakthrough. Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) Working Papers. doi: 978-88-98042-86-9
33. Inbar, E. (2005). The Resilience of Israeli–Turkish Relations. Israel Affairs, 11(4), 591–607. doi:10.1080/13537120500233664
34. Inbar, E. (2011). Israeli-Turkish Tensions and their International Ramifications. Orbis, 55(1), 132–146. doi:10.1016/j.orbis.2010.10.005
35. Inbar, E. (2013). Israel’s Apology to Turkey: A Mistake. BESA Center Perspectives Papers, 201, March 24. Erişim adresi: https://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep04446
36. Israeli, R. (2001). The Turkish-Israeli Odd Couple. ORBIS, 45(1), 65–65. doi:10.1016/S0030-4387(00)00058-2 Jabotinsky, V. (1923). The Iron Wall. Erişim adresi: http://en.jabotinsky.org/media/9747/the-iron-wall.pdf
37. Jones, C. and Guzansky, Y. (2017). Israel’s relations with the Gulf states: Toward the emergence of a tacit security regime? Contemporary Security Policy, 38(3), 398–419. doi:10.1080/13523260.2017.1292375
38. Katzenstein, P. (Ed.). (1996). The Culture of national security, New York: Columbia University Press.
39. Kostenko, Y. I. (2017). “New Periphery Strategy” of Israel. MGIMO Review of International Relations, 1(52), 101-118. doi:10.24833/2071-8160-2017-1-52-101-118
40. Lindenstrauss, G. (2014). Operation Protective Edge: Deepening the Rift between Israel and Turkey. INSS. Erişim adresi: https://www.inss.org.il/publication/operation-protective-edge-deepening-the-rift-between-israel-and-turkey/
41. MacFarquhar, N. (2006). Tide of Arab Opinion Turns to Support for Hezbollah. The New York Times. July 28. Erişim adresi: https://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/28/world/middleeast/28arabs.html
42. Mehmetcik, H. and Belder, F. (2021). The Past as a Benchmark in Defining Turkey’s Status Politics. Contemporary Review of the Middle East, 8(2), 168–192. doi:10.1177/2347798921999192
43. Meital, Y. (2000). The Khartoum Conference and Egyptian Policy after the 1967 War: A Reexamination. Middle East Journal, 54(1), 64–82. Erişim adresi: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4329432
44. Melander, E. (1999). Anarchy Within: The Security Dilemma Between Ethnic Groups in Emerging Anarchy. Uppsala: Uppsala Universitet.
45. Müftüler-Baç, M. (1998). Turkey and Israel: An Evolving Partnership. ACPR Policy Paper, 47. Erişim adresi: http://www.acpr.org.il/Nativ/1999-1/1999-1%20%20meltem%20xs.htm
46. Nachmani, A. (2003). Turkey: Facing a New Millennium : Coping with Intertwined Conflicts. Manchester University Press.
47. Oğuzlu, T. (2010). The Changing Dynamics of Turkey–Israel Relations: A Structural Realist Account. Mediterranean Politics, 15(2), 273–288. doi:10.1080/13629395.2010.485055
48. Özcan, M. (2011). From Strategic Partnership to Successive Crises: Turkish-Israeli relations in the 2000s. In Z. Ö. Oktav (Ed.), Turkey in the 21st Century: Quest for a New Foreign Policy (pp. 31–52). Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.
49. Özdamar, Ö., Hali̇Stoprak, B. T. and Sula, İ. E. (2014). From Good ‘Neighbor to Model’: Turkey’s Changing Roles in the Middle East in the Aftermath of die Arab Spring. Uluslararası İlişkiler / International Relations, 11(42), 93–113. Erişim adresi: https://www.jstor.org/stable/43925853
50. Öztürk, S. (2020). Turkey may recall ambassador in UAE, suspend diplomatic ties, Erdoğan says. Daily Sabah. August 14. Erişim adresi: https://www.dailysabah.com/politics/diplomacy/turkey-may-recall-ambassador-in-uae-suspend-diplomatic-ties-erdogan-says
51. Panayiotides, N. (2012). Is the ‘Arab Spring’ Israel’s Winter? Strategic Instability in the Middle East. International Journal on World Peace, 29(1), 21–40. Erişim adresi: http://www.jstor.org/stable/23266587
52. Philipp, A. (2015). Turkey: A Viable Peace Broker in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict? Willamette Journal of International Law and Dispute Resolution, 23(1), 115–140. Erişim adresi: https://www.jstor.org/stable/26210442
53. Posen, B. R. (1993). The security dilemma and ethnic conflict. Survival, 35(1), 27–47. doi:10.1080/00396339308442672
54. Reus-Smit, C. (1999). The Moral Purpose of the State: Culture, Social Identity, and Institutional Rationality in International Relations. United Kingdom: Princeton University Press.
55. Romano, D. and Rojhilat, S. (2018). Israel’s Periphery Doctrine and the Kurds. In A. Danilovich (Ed.), Federalism, Secession, and International Recognition Regime: Iraqi Kurdistan. Abingdon, Oxon, New York: Routledge.
56. Rosman-Stollman, E. (2004). Balancing Acts: The Gulf States and Israel. Middle Eastern Studies, 40(4), 185–208. doi:10.1080/0026320042000240401
57. Samaan, J.-L. (2017). Israel’s Foreign Policy Beyond the Arab World: Engaging the Periphery. London and New York: Routledge.
58. Schilling, C. L. (2010). The Ghetto Complex: Rethinking Israel’s foreign policy. International Journal of Interdisciplinary Social Sciences, 5, 465–470. doi:10.18848/1833-1882/CGP/v05i04/51677
59. Sever, A. and Almog, O. (2019). The Mavi Marmara: An Embattled Voyage and Its Consequences. In A. Sever and O. Almog (Eds.), Contemporary Israeli–Turkish Relations in Comparative Perspective (pp. 61–100). Cham: Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-05786-2
60. Siniver, A. (2012). Israeli Identities and the Politics of Threat: A Constructivist Interpretation. Ethnopolitics, 11(1), 24–42. doi:10.1080/17449057.2011.571186
61. Sofer, S. (2007). Zionism and the Foundations of Israeli Diplomacy (1. ed.). Cambridge University Press.
62. Star. (2012, September 30). Meşal’den Erdoğan’a: Artık İslam aleminin de liderisin. Erişim adresi: https://www.star.com.tr/politika/mesalden-erdogana-artik-islam-aleminin-de-liderisin-haber-693287/.
63. Szymański, A. (2011). Turkey’s role in resolving the Middle East conflicts. International Issues & Slovak Foreign Policy Affairs, XX(02), 71–84. Erişim adresi: https://www.ceeol.com/search/article-detail?id=261004
64. The Jerusalem Post. (2013, January 4). Morsi: No peace with descendants of apes and pigs. The Jerusalem Post | JPost.Com. Erişim adresi: https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/morsi-no-peace-with-descendants-of-apes-and-pigs
65. Tidy, J. (2012). The Social Construction of Identity: Israeli Foreign Policy and the 2006 War in Lebanon. Global Society, 26(4), 535–556. doi:10.1080/13600826.2012.710597
66. Tür, Ö. (2012). Turkey and Israel in the 2000s—From Cooperation to Conflict. Israel Studies, 17(3), 45–66. doi:10.2979/israelstudies.17.3.45
67. Ulusoy, K. (2020). Turkey and Israel: Changing Patterns of Alliances in the Eastern Mediterranean. Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies, 22(3), 415–430. doi:10.1080/19448953.2020.1753928
68. Uzer, U. (2020). The downfall of Turkish–Israeli relations: A cold peace between former strategic allies. Israel Affairs, 26(5), 687–697. doi:10.1080/13537121.2020.1806563
69. Volfová, G. Ö. (2016). Turkey’s Middle Eastern Endeavors: Discourses and Practices of Neo-Ottomanism under the AKP. Die Welt Des Islams, 56(3–4), 489–510. doi:10.1163/15700607-05634p10
70. Voller, Y. (2015). From Periphery to the Moderates: Israeli Identity and Foreign Policy in the Middle East. Political Science Quarterly, 130(3), 505–535. doi:10.1002/polq.12360
71. Waever, O., Buzan, B., Kelstrup, M. and Lemaitre, P. (1993). Identity, Migration and the New Security Agenda in Europe. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
72. Waxman, D. (2006). The Pursuit of Peace and the Crisis of Israeli Identity: Defending/Defining the Nation. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
73. Waxman, D. (2009). From Jerusalem to Baghdad? Israel and the War in Iraq. International Studies Perspectives, 10(1), 1–17. Erişim adresi: https://www.jstor.org/stable/44218575
74. Wendt, A. (1992). Anarchy is what States Make of it: The Social Construction of Power Politics. International Organization, 46(2), 391–425. Erişim adresi: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2706858
75. Wendt, A. (1994). Collective Identity Formation and the International State. The American Political Science Review, 88(2), 384–396. doi:10.2307/2944711
76. Wendt, A. (1999). Social Theory of International Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
77. Yavuz, M. H. (2022). The motives behind the AKP’s foreign policy: Neo-Ottomanism and strategic autonomy. Turkish Studies, 23(5), 659–680. doi:10.1080/14683849.2022.2100700