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Wednesday, June 9, 2010     GET REAL

Turkey bans Israel from key allied air exercise

ANKARA — Turkey has banned Israel from another major military exercise.

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On June 7, Turkey launched the annual Anatolian Eagle air combat exercise in the central city of Konya without Israel. Anatolian Eagle, attended by NATO and Arab states, was meant to last about 10 days and would focus on both combat as well as electronic warfare.

This marked the third time that Israel was banned from Anatolian Eagle over the last year. Officials said the Turkish military has suspended Israeli participation in combat air exercises since the Hamas war in December 2008, Middle East Newsline reported.


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The latest edition of Anatolian Eagle includes leading Arab allies of Turkey, including Jordan and the United Arab Emirates. Italy, Spain and the United States, which canceled their participation in October 2009 because of the ban on Israel, have participated in the current exercise.

"There is nothing new here," a Turkish official said.

Officials said the Turkish military has been drafting a three-stage plan to end cooperation with Israel. But they said the military plan was not said to include the cancellation of current projects with Israel.

The next annual major exercise between Israel and Turkey was scheduled for the summer of 2010. But officials said Turkey would probably cancel the Reliant Mermaid naval search-and-exercise, held in the eastern Mediterranean with the United States.

"We are ready to hold similar exercises with the United States," the official said.



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