Just 35 years ago, no one foresaw diplomatic relations between Israel and seven Arab countries
Welcome! Israel and Turkey have re-established diplomatic ties.
Israel is at home among Western nations, due in part due to its democratically elected parliament and its outsized role in global technology. But it is also due to its long isolation in the Middle East. This has forced Israel to compete with European nations instead of its neighbors, all of which are Muslim-majority countries. But make no mistake, Israel is a Middle Eastern nation. Any step it can take to bolster its relations with its neighbors deepens regional stability. This benefits not only Israel and not only the Middle East, but the globe.
Even cold peace, not to mention economic exchanges and tourism are preferable to war, which is why the Abraham Accords are such a game changer. They have advanced way beyond the cold peace between Israel and between Egypt and Jordan.
None of this is to say that these nations are democratic or beacons of human rights.
Indeed, the Islamization and deepening autocracy of a once secular and democratic Turkey under Erdogan hinders regional security. Ironically, this makes Israel’s renewed relations with Turkey all the more important, given that Erdogan has become a figurehead in the Muslim Brotherhood. If Erdogan can recognize Israel, others who wish to harm Israel harm may back off.
Do the renewed Israel-Turkey ties entail risks? Will Turkey see the restoration of diplomatic friendship as an Israeli concession to Turkey’s tolerance of Hamas operations in its borders? As reported at length on last week’s IJN, Hamas orchestrates a well organized and well financed effort to spur anti-Israel terrorism from within East Jerusalem — long an arena of Israel-Palestinian cooperation. We believe that new diplomatic ties will give Israel greater clout in pressing Turkey to close down Hamas within its borders. Good relations go further than demands.
Israel has been criticized for not calling out the political or human rights records of countries it has relations with, such as Azerbaijan and, most recently, Russia. But Israel’s dangerous location and very small size makes it all the more remarkable that it can aid other countries economically and technologically while ensuring its own survival.
Meanwhile, Israel’s expansion of civil rights for its minority communities sends an implicit but strong message to its neighbors: Jews and Muslims need not be foes.
From being surrounded wholly by enemies at its founding in 1948, to surviving attacks on its existence by those enemies, Israel has now established peace treaties with former enemies, Jordan and Egypt, and diplomatic relations with United Arab Emirates, Bahrain Morocco, Sudan — and Turkey! Arab countries now have embassies in Israel.
Just 35 years ago, at the beginning of the First Intifada, this was unthinkable. The Middle East has changed not enough, but it has changed dramatically. Israel’s growing regional role means a more stable and thriving Middle East for all of its residents.
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