Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in New York, while they are participating in the work of the United Nations General Assembly. The meeting between the leaders of Turkey and Israel has raised hopes for an improvement in relations between the two countries.
In New York, where the meeting of the General Assembly of the United Nations is being held, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met for the first time with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The meeting marks an important turning point in the latest efforts to bring the two countries closer together with a difficult past that has often been accompanied by harsh criticism of the two leaders towards each other.
But analysts say the past will not be an obstacle to moving forward.
“Both leaders have been in power for a long time. They have a pragmatic side, know how to cooperate and make the necessary turns in their policies. So overall, it won’t be a love affair. They won’t be best friends or close allies,” says Gallia Lindenstrauss of the Institute for National Security Studies.
In a post on Platform X, Turkish officials said the meeting was positive and the talks focused on energy cooperation. Ankara is reaching out to Israel because it sees it as the least expensive way to deliver natural gas from its vast reserves.
But analysts say the lack of trust between the two sides will continue.
“There is no mutual trust between Israel and Turkey. If they decide to build a natural gas pipeline, it would last at least 50 years. But what would happen if Mr. Erdogan or whoever comes to power later decides to close the pipeline? That would be a big problem. Now I think there are measures to build trust between the two countries, but I don’t think it will happen soon”, says Mehmet Ogutcu from the organization London Energy Club.
Iran’s growing influence in the region, observers say, is a common concern of theirs.
Azerbaijan, backed by Israel and Turkey, is a point of concern for Tehran because Iran supports Azerbaijan’s rival, Armenia.
Fighting between Azerbaijan-backed forces and Armenians in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh province erupted again this month, underscoring the importance of cooperation.
“For Israel, Iran is an existential threat. For Turkey, this is simply a problem to deal with. The only exception is Azerbaijan, where tensions between the authorities in Baku and Tehran have risen sharply in the past two years. In this conflict, Israel and Turkey are strong supporters of Azerbaijan”, says expert Gallia Lindenstrauss.
President Erdogan is a strong supporter of the Palestinians, and the ongoing cycle of violence between Israel and the Palestinians remains a threat to Turkey and Israel’s efforts to improve relations.
But some analysts say Ankara understands that engagement with Israel may offer a better chance of supporting the Palestinian cause.
“At the time when Turkey and Israel did not have good relations, Turkey lost its power to influence what was happening between the Palestinians and the Israelis. Now that they are closer to the Israelis, the authorities in Turkey have a better chance to influence what is happening on the ground,” says Selin Nasi, an expert on Turkish affairs at the London University of Economics.
According to media reports, Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Erdogan have exchanged invitations to visit each other’s countries. President Erdogan, a devout Muslim, has expressed his desire to visit Jerusalem this year and pray at the al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third holiest site.