Antalya Diplomacy Forum confronts Israeli attacks on Gaza, Mideast tensions

The effect of Israel's attacks on the Gaza Strip and tensions in the Middle East were discussed Friday at the Hope or Deception? Imagining a New Ground in the Middle East panel at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum.

More
Antalya Diplomacy Forum confronts Israeli attacks on Gaza Mideast tensions
How to exit the 'lose-lose cycle' in global security

How to exit the 'lose-lose cycle' in global security?

Today’s world is facing rapidly changing security dynamics and increasing geopolitical competition. This competition, which has accelerated and morphed, especially with the COVID-19 pandemic, has also created a deep security crisis following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Israel’s attacks in Gaza.

More

In the recent primary elections held in Michigan, a state where Arab and Muslim voters could have a critical impact on the November 2024 presidential race, a clear message was sent to Biden regarding Palestine. Michigan, known as a swing state, saw Trump win over Clinton by a narrow margin of 11,000 votes in 2016. In this week's Democratic Party primary elections, the fact that over 100,000 voters opted for the 'uncommitted' option against Biden constitutes a critical warning to the President. The highly effective 'Dump Biden' campaign launched before the primaries was evidently impactful. Despite Biden's attempts to address the Palestinian backlash with some statements to the press before the primaries, it was revealed that these remarks did not suffice to appease the Palestinian sentiment within the party. So far, Biden has been gauging the reactions of young people, African Americans, and Muslims within the party through polls, but the results of the Michigan primaries indicate a shift in voting behavior among these demographics.

The current international system, which was already quite vulnerable, has totally collapsed after Israel's genocidal policies and the unconditional support of Western governments for the ongoing genocide committed by Israel. Despite the intensifying global rivalry, there was still some hope for the consolidation of the norms-based international system. At least, many states have declared their determination to take effective measures against the rising unconventional global threats such as climate change, environmental problems, irregular and illegal migration, food and water shortage, drought, failed states, cyber threats and violent nonstate actors.

The world was not in good shape on the second anniversary of the Russian-Ukrainian war. A quick look at the most recent developments alone would suffice to appreciate that we are entering a period of fragmentation and high risks.

In an opinion piece published in The Washington Post, a call was made for the United States to start discussing the truth about Israel's nuclear capacity. The piece, signed by expert names in the issue of nuclear weapon proliferation, notes that American government officials have been following a policy of denying Israel's nuclear weapons' existence due to a secret presidential order in effect for 60 years. Experts argue that this policy has become increasingly meaningless, especially as Israeli politicians are making nuclear weapon use threats in Gaza, and it impedes America's ability to effectively handle regional conflict scenarios. While this kind of call is not new, such debates indicate a changing perception of Israel within the American public and a questioning of America's Israel policy.

Israel is killing humanity in Gaza amid global inertia

For the last four months, Israel has continued to kill Palestinians, including babies, children, women, elderly people, innocent civilians, journalists who cover the Israeli attacks and even United Nations employees. The number of people killed by Israel has approached 30,000. Israeli forces bomb civilian apartments, hospitals, schools, ambulances, mosques, churches, refugee camps and U.N. facilities. So far, Israel has destroyed most of the Gaza Strip, the home of more than 2 million people.

More
Israel is killing humanity in Gaza amid global inertia
Türkiye s diplomatic normalization efforts to yield key alliances

Türkiye’s diplomatic normalization efforts to yield key alliances

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's visit to Egypt marked the completion of yet another stage in Türkiye's normalization policy. The two countries thus agreed to brush aside their 12-year disagreement in an attempt to join forces anew. There is little sense in bringing up past statements to talk about concessions and U-turns.

More

Donald Trump, who seeks reelection in the United States, made headlines with his most recent comments on NATO. It is a well-known fact that he had previously described NATO as “obsolete” and condemned NATO allies that did not meet the 2% defense spending target. This time around, the former U.S. president told a crowd in South Carolina that he would encourage Russia to do “whatever the hell they want” to any NATO country that does not meet its financial obligations. He made those remarks shortly after the Republicans blocked military aid to Ukraine and Russian President Vladimir Putin blamed the war on NATO’s fifth enlargement in an interview.

Türkiye and Egypt stand at a pivotal historical moment in the evolution of their bilateral relations. Following 12 years marked by rivalry and conflict, the visit of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to Egypt has the potential to open a new chapter in Ankara-Cairo relations. This visit offers both nations the opportunity to forge a novel model of cooperative relations on numerous contentious issues. More importantly, it could herald the onset of strategic cooperation in the realms of defense and security, areas in which such collaboration was previously nonexistent. Before the joint news conference in Cairo, the two leaders signed the Joint Statement on the Restructuring of High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council Meetings, signifying both countries’ readiness to recalibrate their relations.

The remarks made by Trump, who is widely expected to run for president as the Republican Party candidate, regarding NATO once again underscored how fragile America's claim to global leadership is. Trump threatened to pressure certain NATO member countries to increase their military spending or face consequences. By stating that Russia could do whatever it wants with these countries, Trump escalated his anti-NATO rhetoric to new heights during his presidency. Trump's longstanding questioning of the concept of collective defense by the United States and his failure to protect a NATO member country practically spells the end of this military alliance. The loss of the deterrent effect of NATO's Article 5-based collective defense concept would not only undermine the alliance's guarantees but also signify the end of America's leadership within the Western alliance. As America engages in a global power struggle with Russia and China, it will become increasingly difficult for the country to conduct this struggle within the Western alliance without establishing unity.

An interview and a speech from last week rang alarm bells regarding the fate of world politics. The two-hour interview with Russian President Vladimir Putin was conducted by the American journalist Tucker Carlson, while the speech was delivered at the United Nations General Assembly by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and concluded that the world had entered an “age of chaos.”

Some analysts think ‘it’s too early’ to say all disputes will be resolved while others say two NATO allies still maintain ‘positive strategic relationship’

The killing of three American soldiers in Jordan by pro-Iran militias via UAV strikes initiated a new escalation in the escalating regional conflict. Since October 7th, concerns about regional warfare seemed obsolete. We previously noted Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's attempt to expand the Gaza conflict regionally and entangle the US in conflict with Iran. The Jordan attack partially succeeded in these efforts. Over the past week, the US conducted military operations in the region, signaling a response.

The Western governments and peoples will soon realize that the Western world is deeply divided between two conflicting poles: right-wing extremists and ultranationalists versus moralists and universalists. The most recent developments in Palestine have further contributed to this polarization. In particular, Western governments and peoples are divided on two fronts regarding Israel’s unrestricted use of violence against innocent civilians.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits the Middle East this weekend for the fifth time since the Oct. 7 attack.

The Western governments continue to give unconditional support to Israel. The Western military, political, diplomatic and economic support is not for the security of Israel but for the continuation of the Israeli genocidal atrocities against innocent civilians. The United States and other Western countries are complicit in Israel's genocide crime. Everybody knows well that without the support of the West, Israel cannot attack Palestinians and cannot continue its expansionist and colonial settlement policies.

Traditionally, Türkiye-Iran relations have been defined by a mix of competition and cooperation. Sharing a long land border and possessing a multidimensional historical depth, numerous dynamics simultaneously affect the relationship between the two countries.

Against the backdrop of Israel's massacre in Gaza, attention has been shifting to Iran. Following the bombardment of the Houthis by the United States and the United Kingdom for disrupting commercial shipping in the Red Sea, Iran and Pakistan experienced an escalation, with both sides firing missiles over terrorism. Moreover, Israel killed five members of the Revolutionary Guards Corps in Damascus last weekend, resuming its past operations against the Iranian presence in Syria. The seeming purpose of such strikes is to stop Iran from sending military aid to the Axis of Resistance – namely Hezbollah and Hamas. More important, however, is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's commitment to ensuring the Israeli-Palestinian conflict's regionwide spillover – which contradicts the Biden administration.

Whoever talks about the Palestinian-Israeli question from the United States to China and from the European Union to Russia claims that they support a two-state solution. The main reason for this claim is the two well-known United Nations Resolutions about the issue.

The Biden administration has been under pressure, as reported in the media for some time, to bring an end to military operations, facilitate humanitarian aid, and address the post-war governance of Gaza, especially considering the lack of positive response from the Netanyahu government. Reports suggested that Netanyahu's government did not respond positively to these requests, and there were indications that Washington's patience was wearing thin. The latest news, where Biden reportedly told Netanyahu that the ultimate solution is a two-state resolution, was quickly countered by Netanyahu stating that this possibility is not on the table, creating a significant setback for Washington. With these statements, Netanyahu not only declared the obvious but also made it clear that under his leadership, there would be no genuine peace process, embarrassing the American President, his biggest supporter, in the eyes of the public.