Karel Valansi'nin kaleminden...

The diplomatic crisis between Turkey and Israel in the wake of the Mavi Marmara incident in 2010 led to downgrade the diplomatic relations. During the Operation Protective Edge in the summer of 2014, relations between the two countries reached a new low. In this sensitive time, Shai Cohen was appointed as the new Consul General of Israel in Istanbul. Approaching the end of his term, we discussed the present and the future of the Turkish-Israeli relations. What were your expectations coming to Turkey, how it turned out? When I got my appointment in November 2013, the reconciliation process had begun already and the expectations were very high and an agreement was about to be signed. Then all of a sudden, the war in Gaza started and the things turned upside down. I was told by many people “don’t expect too much, it is going to be difficult the first few months...” But it was proven the contrary almost immediately. Except for few requests on my part for meetings, I was accepted right...

Having started in 2011, the political upheavals in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) have irrevocably transformed the region, and the world, as well. Beginning as peaceful protests for democracy, justice and equality, these uprisings resulted in the overthrow of long-time dictators such as Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali in Tunisia, Hosni Mubarak in Egypt and Moammar Gadhafi in Libya – with external interference in the last case. Called the Arab Spring, this rapid change was first seen as a new chapter in the region in which there could be radical change toward democracy. Traditionally, MENA is perceived as immune to waves of democratization, differing from other regions. For this reason, these uprisings were at first appreciated as a popular movement to get rid of mostly secular but authoritarian rulers who had been in power for decades. However, the outcome has been very different. The wave of popular unrest in Syria did not result with the ouster of Bashar Assad as in the case of T...

Israel appointed Mr. Eitan Na’eh, who served as a secretary at the embassy in Ankara back in 1993, as the new ambassador to Turkey. This is the first time that this post has been filled since 2010, marking the full restoration of ties between the two countries after six years of animosity. On an exclusive interview with Ambassador Na’eh, we discussed the future of Turkish-Israeli relations, the East Mediterranean energy corridor and the Middle East. Normalization between the two countries is continuing with high level visits. What is next in the program?  We are developing our relations. We put the roof after we put the foundation and the walls. We are setting up a schedule, renewing dialogues at different levels on different topics. We have to re-identify our common interests. We have to decide how we want to act upon it. We are at the very early stages. We have normalized our relationship, now we are re-building relations. That will take some time. We are looking into the...