Turkey Halts NATO-Israel Cooperation

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – Israel faced even more security challenges Monday after fresh confirmation that Turkey has blocked cooperation between the NATO military alliance and the Jewish nation.

Several sources familiar with the discussions said Turkey began halting NATO-Israel joint actions after Israel launched a war against Hamas in Gaza in October.

The armed conflict followed the Hamas attack against Israel on October 7, in which at least some 1,200 people died and hundreds were kidnapped.

Turkey said the alliance “should not engage with Israel as a partner” until there is an end to the war, according to sources with knowledge about the process. Under NATO rules, critical decisions must be made through consensus.

Israel carries the status of NATO partner and has fostered close relations with the military alliance and some of its members, notably its biggest ally, the United States.

“Ankara’s approach is in line with its policy of protecting and supporting the Hamas terrorist organization, including hosting a Hamas headquarters since 2012,” commented the Jewish News Syndicate (JNS), a news agency covering Israel and the Jewish world.

THREATENING INVASION

However, news about Turkey’s thinking has emerged after its President Recep Tayyip Erdoğa threatened to send troops into Israel. “Just like we entered Karabakh, just like we entered Libya, we might do similar to them,” he said last week in a meeting with his Justice and Development Party (AKP).

These threats prompted Israel’s Foreign Minister, Israel Katz, to demand that NATO expel Turkey from the organization.
“Erdoğan follows in the footsteps of [late Iraqi leader] Saddam Hussein and threatens to attack Israel. Just let him remember what happened there and how it ended,” he added, referring to Saddam’s eventual execution after U.S.-led forces invaded Iraq.

Katz instructed Israeli diplomats worldwide to lobby other NATO countries to remove Turkey as a member due to its violation of the organization’s founding principles.

Dutch anti-Islam leader Geert Wilders, whose party recently won the elections in the Netherlands agreed calling Erdoğan an “Islamofascist” and “totally nuts” on social media.

Wilders added that Turkey “should be kicked out of NATO.”

The Dutch politician has long proposed expelling Turkey from the alliance. The Netherlands, unlike Israel, is also a NATO member.

LARGE ARMY

Turkey joined NATO in 1952 and has the alliance’s second-largest army.

Experts say, however, that NATO does not have a specific mechanism for suspending or expelling a member, though members may voluntarily withdraw.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg reportedly dismissed the possibility of creating such a mechanism in 2021, saying it “would never happen.”

Analysts also suggest that the proximity of several NATO members to Russia plays a role in that thinking.

Yet, with Turkey having significant influence within NATO, questions remain about how its anti-Israel stance will impact the West’s ability to support Israel.

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