Israel-Turkey Policy Dialogue Publica on Series November 2016 Turkish-Israeli Rela ons: Crises and Coopera on by Oğuz Çelikkol* Several factors have always played an important role in Turkish-Israeli rela ons since the two countries established diploma c rela ons in 1949. First of all, both countries have been in the Western camp and have a special rela onship with the United States. Turkey's recogni on of the importance of the Jewish lobby in US poli cs and Turkey's contacts with this powerful lobby predated its diploma c contacts with the State of Israel. When Turkey faced the expansionist threat of the Soviet Union just a er the Second World War and wished to establish close military es with the United States, it also ini ated contacts with the American Jewish lobby, and recognized the newly established State of Israel. Although Turkey voted against the Pales ne par on plan of the United Na ons and the division of Pales nian territories into Arab and Jewish states in 1947, it became the first regional power to recognize the Israeli State, just a few weeks before the Turkish foreign minister's first official visit to Washington in 1949. Turkey joined the US-led North Atlan c Treaty Organiza on(NATO) in 1952 and formed special diploma c and military es with the US during the 1950s. The American Jewish lobby has con nued to play an important role in Turkish-Israeli rela ons. In the 1970s and'80s when Turkey needed“friends” in the US Congress to protect it against“hos le“ American Greek and Armenian lobbies working against Turkish interests, Turkish contacts with the Jewish lobby intensified. I was a counselor at the Turkish Embassy in Washington between 1985 and 1990 and the Turkish consul­general in Los Angeles between 1993 and 1996. With the beginning of the American Greek and Armenian lobbies' ac vi es against Turkish interests in the United States, Turkey came to view the American Jewish lobby as a natural“ally” against“hos le” lobbies, and Turkey's contacts with the American Jewish Organiza ons took on a new dimension. At this me, the small Turkish American community also started to organize a poli cal“lobby” to counter the American Greek and Armenian lobbies' increasing an-Turkish ac vi es. Unlike the Turkish-Greek and Turkish-Armenian history, Turkish-Jewish rela ons in the past have provided a very“fer le” founda on for current and future Turkish-Jewish rela ons. Although there were“unpleasant”, even“dark” pages in Turkish-Greek and Turkish-Armenian history, Turks and Jews have enjoyed“happier” * Dr. Oğuz Çelikkol i s Turkey's former Ambassador to Tel Aviv. He earned his Ph.D. at İstanbul University's Faculty of Economics. He served in Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs for 37 years. He served in Permanent Mission of Turkey to the United Na ons, and Turkish Embassies in Beirut, and Washington DC. In the Foreign Ministry's headquarters in Ankara, he served as Deputy Director of Middle Eastern Affairs, Director of Middle Eastern Affairs and Turkish Special Representa ve to Iraq. He represented Turkey as Ambassador in Damascus, Athens, Tel Aviv, and Bangkok. Currently, he is a lecturer at İstanbul Kültür University. Dr. Çelikkol is the author the book“From One Minute to Mavi Marmara, Turkey­Israel Conflict”. 1