TEL AVIV Ñ Israel has concluded that an Islamic-oriented government
in Turkey will not cancel Israeli-led military projects.
Analysts and officials said Israel was prepared for an AKP victory. They
said Israeli diplomats and officials engaged in a quiet dialogue with some
of the AKP leadership.
The result, they said, is that AKP has quietly acknowledged Israel as a
strategic ally of
Turkey. They said any attempt to end Israeli-Turkish defense relations will
be opposed by Ankara's military, Middle East Newsline reported.
Israeli analysts and officials predicted that the Justice and
Development Party, or AKP, will not cancel or suspend a range of military
upgrades and other projects being conducted by Israeli defense contractors.
Israeli firms are engaged in about $1 billion worth of military projects in
Turkey.
"They won't cancel any curent deals," Alon Liel, a former Israeli
Foreign Ministry director-general and ambassador to Ankara, said. "But I
don't think we will be able to add [additional contracts]."
"There could be changes in tone, but the strategic relations will
continue," Uri Bar-Ner, a former Israeli ambassador to Turkey, said.
Bar-Ner said the strategic relations between Ankara and Jerusalem go
beyond that of the military. He said Israel is the only country that lobbies
for Turkey in the White House and Congress. Israel and Turkey also have a
brisk intelligence exchange on military and security issues, he said.
But some officials said the AKP will seek to highlight the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They envisioned a scenario in which the ruling
party would seek to block Israeli defense bids as several European Union
countries have already done.