Just yesterday, Turkey and Israel signed an accord – coordinated by U.N Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon – to restore relations following the rift that had grown since the naval blockade incident of 2010. It came just hours before an explosion rocked through Istanbul Ataturk Airport, killing at least 36 people and injuring 147.
Following the attack, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for cohesion and swift action.
“Make no mistake: For terrorist organizations, there is no difference between Istanbul and London, Ankara and Berlin, Izmir and Chicago or Antalya and Rome,” he said. “Unless all governments and the entire mankind join forces in the fight against terrorism, much worse things than what we fear to imagine today will come true.”
Image Source: Randam
The relationship between Turkey and Israel is a long, and complicated one. With plenty of separations, a few divorces and a couple of reconciliations. Stephen Cook,the Eni Enrico Mattei Senior Fellow for Middle East and Africa Studies with the Council on Foreign Relations, wrote about the accord:
“Today’s official announcement that Israel and Turkey are restoring full diplomatic relations was not that much of a surprise. But as important a development as the deal may be, this is unlikely to be the dawn of a new day in Israeli-Turkish relations.”
Writing for Defense One, Cook offers a guide and analysis of the events that led up to the most recent accord. Find the full article here.
