Turkey in the Middle

He was thoughtful, insightful and sympathetic to Israel’s concerns. But he came to promote the “Saudi Peace Plan.” He said, “Of course the ‘right of return’ won’t happen, but it has to be there.” He said the Saudi Foreign Minister didn’t mean it when he said, “If Israel refuses, that means it doesn’t want peace and … will be putting their future … in the hands of the lords of war.” He said Syria wants to be “engaged,” so Israel and the U.S. should accept Syrian leader Bashar Assad’s overtures regardless of his support for insurgencies in Lebanon and Iraq.

He was thoughtful, insightful and sympathetic to Israel’s concerns. But he came to promote the “Saudi Peace Plan.” He said, “Of course the ‘right of return’ won’t happen, but it has to be there.” He said the Saudi Foreign Minister didn’t mean it when he said, “If Israel refuses, that means it doesn’t want peace and … will be putting their future … in the hands of the lords of war.” He said Syria wants to be “engaged,” so Israel and the U.S. should accept Syrian leader Bashar Assad’s overtures regardless of his support for insurgencies in Lebanon and Iraq. He said Hamas might indeed be a terrorist organization, but the “Palestinian people” wanted peace. The next day, his government invited Hamas for a visit.

Faced with the counterproposal that the Saudis would better promote peace in the region by not funding radical Sunni jihadists and by not spewing anti-Semitic rhetoric in the media and in the schools, he had the good grace not to defend either. He acknowledged, too, that Turkey’s success in ending Syrian support for terrorists was not predicated on “engaging” Bashar, but on a demand backed by the mobilization of the Turkish army.

The whole exercise was beneath a serious Turkish diplomat and beneath his government. And how odd of Turkey to flack for the Arab League plan for the dismemberment of Israel – Turkey is neither Arab nor a member of the League.

Turkey, in fact, has been a good friend to Israel even when the two governments have disagreements, as governments often do. [It is likewise an important ally to the U.S. even when the two governments have disagreements.] The most important part of the meeting concerned the ongoing energy, trade and security cooperation that has been forged between Israel and Turkey with the U.S. standing alongside as an interested party.

Turkey does have a unique position from which to actually engage as a mediator or a bridge between Muslim states and Israel, but to mediate requires the independence to stand between the parties, not to pick one (or 22) against the other. Does Turkey really believe the so-called “right of return” is a nonstarter? Then say so and help the Palestinians accept reality. Does Turkey really believe – as he said – that the problem is about territory, not Jews? Then tell the Saudis and Palestinians that their failure to draw Israel on maps, and their venomous public Jew-hatred makes them unfit partners for conversation among civilized countries. Does Turkey really believe Syria wants a constructive conversation with Israel or the United States? Then tell them to stop funneling arms and equipment east and west to insurgencies that kill Americans and Israelis.

Multilateral conversations between Israel and the states of the region will ipso facto be x-against-1 affairs, the Arab states on one side and Israel on the other. Precisely because Turkey is not a member of the Arab League, it should help balance the scales by standing with Israel on the subjects that it can and reassuring Israel for steps it might choose to take and supporting Israel for its fundamental statements of principle.

Only then will Turkey’s claim to mediate and bridge have meaning. Only then will Turkey’s diplomatic representatives have a mission worthy of their time and their skill.