Israel, Jerusalem, 15 January/corr. Trend R. Abdullayev, R. Hafizoglu/ Turkey and Israel are strategic partners and the announcement that representatives of the Jewish lobby in the US will support Turkish interests is a demonstration of the friendship between Muslims and the Jewish, high ranking experts said.
" Ankara has always considered Israel and the Jewish lobby in the US to be its own true strategic partners," the ambassador of Turkey to Israel Namig Tan said to Trend on 15 January.
Abe Foxman, the head of the Anti-Defamation League of the US, a well-known representative of the Jewish Diaspora, announced that the Jewish community is ready to lobby Turkish interests during the Turkish president's visit to Washington. According to Dunya Bulteni, a Turkish news agency, Foxman said: "The Jews are always with the Turks." In connection to this the pro-Islamic community of Turkey, Milli Qorus, accused President Abdulla Gul of pro-Jewish policy which runs contrary to Islam values.
Turkey is the first Muslim country to recognize Israel, the diplomat said. " Turkey has specific strategic links of military and economic cooperation with Israel, however Turkey cooperates with the entire Arab world as well," he said.
According to Namig Tan, the cooperation between Turkey and Israel allows Ankara to accomplish the mission of peacekeeper between Israel and the Arab world. " Turkey is a unique country of the region and has very good relations with Israel and the Arab world. The Israelites, Palestinians and representatives of the Arab world trust us. Turkey is an ideal country from an intermediary mission point of view that it can regulate the Near East problem. Currently Turkey has the potential to serve as a bridge between East and West, between different civilizations and religions," Namig Tan said.
The President of the Congress of Azerbaijanis in the Near East Alex Shapiro Suliman considers the words of Foxman as a true example of the friendship between Muslims and Jews. "Though Turkey has very good relations with the Arab world, Ankara sees Israel and the Jewish lobby of the US through the prism of national interest as strategic allies," Shapiro Suliman said to Trend on 15 January.
According to Suliman, the Turkish Diaspora has cooperated with the Jewish Diaspora in issues that presented strategic interest for the region. For example, the lobbying in US Congress in support of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) oil pipeline and in support of abolition of discrimination with respect to Azerbaijan and the 907th amendment to the Freedom Support Act of Congress.
According to Suliman, such cooperation used to be and will be a great success and it is doubtless that the development of strategic cooperation with America's Jewish organizations strengthens the alliance of Turkish-Azerbaijani Diasporas in many respects.
According to Merve Kavachi, an expert at George Washington University, Abe Foxman's words "The Jews are always with the Turks" cannot be understood unambiguously. "The statements of the head of the Jewish Diaspora were not made in support of the Turkish President," Merve Kavachi, former MP of Turkey said to Trend from Washington over the telephone. "I do not believe that the Jewish lobby support Islamic adherent Abdulla Gul," he added. "Such statements serve to cool developing relations between the Arab and Turkish worlds."
According to a political expert, George Bush's recent statement: " Turkey proved that Islam and democracy can work together" is a moment that attracts attention. "The prime minister of Turkey, Rejeb Tayyip Erdogan, pursues a more moderate policy with respect to the US, Bush recognized the choice of the Turkish people," the expert said.