The Turkey search for Israel for the new business of the gas, but the road is all uphill. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan intends to involve Tel Aviv in the exclusive economic zone by proposing a Israel-Turkey maritime agreement but that you cut out Cipro. Tel Aviv’s first response was that any proposal that comes at Nicosia’s expense is a non-starter, out of the question.
This hypothetical rapprochement is not a foregone conclusion, given that with the strengthening ofalleanza Ryad-Usa-Tel Aviv Erdogan had declared himself a defender of Palestinians and Muslims in general, officially transforming Turkey into the refuge of Muslim Brotherhood, since unofficially it already was, along with Qatar. But the question does not concern only the two countries, but the legitimate positions of Greece, Egypt and Israel on the pipeline Eastmed.
Why has the Ankara government considered establishing a link with Israel? Because, net of the enormous difficulties of the country’s financial system, Erdogan has understood that without direct entry into the energy dossier he will not have much hope of rebalancing his accounts and his leadership. The Turkish economy has faced two significant stumbling blocks in this 2020: the health factor, like everyone, and the depreciation of the lira. Of course, in the last period there have been small signs of recovery: the Turkish economy has outperformed all the nations of the G20 in the third quarter of the year, thanks to a combination of interest rate cuts, government spending and a government push for banks to lend (with loan growth remaining robust throughout the summer).
But the ballast of the lira remains intact, which lost 24% against the dollar in 2020. The new governor of the Central Bank, Naci Agbal, characterized the start of his term with an increase in interest rates at most in over two years. Furthermore, Turkey’s European trading partners lost momentum in the fourth quarter due to various restrictions imposed to regain control over the pandemic, resulting in the exports they will contribute less to growth. Also, according to a survey Istanbul barometer, recorded by the Statistical Office, 87% of citizens admit that they cannot afford to face urgent expenditure while 55.3% believe that their economic situation will worsen.
But there is also the EU front to play an important role: the European Parliament called on the European Council to continue in a “single” stance against illegal actions of Turkey against Greece e Cipro it’s at impose sanctions. There were 631 yeses, with a request to act quickly. EU leaders will meet next Thursday for another summit, during which they will return to examine possible sanctions.
Turkey has reiterated on several occasions that it is ready to engage in talks with Greece on a wide range of issues affecting their relations, but at the same time Erdogan’s provocations do not stop, as the Navtex a Kastellorizo it’s at Cipro.
In light of this scenario, therefore, Erdogan has decided to involve Israel in the gas EEZ. The move follows a similar one four months ago, when Ankara officials sent their Israeli counterparts a blatant message about Turkey’s desire to start talks on the issue. The idea of being diplomatically isolated in the new geopolitical hub of the world, the Mediterraneo, new crossroads of gas and pipelines, is imposing new routes on the Turkish president, after having imposed himself by force in Libya and in Syria. But his government is not characterized by diplomatic tones, far from it. “No sanctions can ever compromise Turkey”, tweeted the Turkish Foreign Ministry in response to the comments of the Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias, very close to Israel, which complained about Turkey’s so-called expansionary policies. The risk also continues on social networks.
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