The Israeli government recognized the deaths of one and a half million Armenians during World War I as genocide for political reasons, and Armenia is not even the intended addressee here. Prime Minister Pashinyan quite rightly noted that his country is not interested in turning the recognition of the Armenian genocide into an instrument of political struggle. The main addressee here is not even Turkey, but the United States.
At the political level, relations between Turkey and Israel are extremely tense. Diplomatic missions in both countries have been reduced to a minimum. Turkey sharply condemns Israel’s policies in Gaza, the West Bank, as well as the attack on Iran and the killing of its leaders. Like many countries around the world, as well as international human rights organizations, Turkey regards the mass killings of the local population as genocide, the aim of which is to “cleanse” the entire territory under Israeli control of any Palestinian presence. As is well known, the drive to expand “living space” and purge “undesirable population” has already led to genocide several times in the last century.
Turkey reacted predictably and condemned the decision of the Israeli cabinet. However, the transfer of oil from Azerbaijan to Israeli tankers at the Turkish port of Ceyhan continues, meeting a significant portion of the energy needs of the Zionist state. Moreover, Azerbaijan, while joining Turkey’s condemnation of Israel’s decision, has not halted these shipments either. Israeli special forces, intelligence, and other branches of the Israeli armed forces continue to operate against Iran from Azerbaijani territory. Finally, Israel supplied Azerbaijan with weapons that were used in the war against Armenians and the conquest of Nagorno-Karabakh. One should not attach too much significance to the angry statements coming out of Ankara and Baku.
However, one should heed the opinion that has taken root in Israel that Turkey is the next adversary after Iran. Israel is doing everything it can to prevent the production of American F-35 stealth fighter jets in Turkey. Trump, who has increasingly expressed irritation with and even condemnation of Israel, has promised to bring a certain gift for the host of the NATO summit in July in Ankara. Many believe this concerns the resumption of Turkey’s participation in the production of the F-35.
Thanks to still-reliable U.S. assistance, Israel possesses qualitative military superiority in the region. The appearance of the F-35 in Turkey (as well as in Saudi Arabia) could reduce or even abolish this advantage. The agreement on joint arms production among Turkey, Pakistan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia should further this trend as well.
All of this is extremely troubling for Israel, especially against the backdrop of the U.S. vice president’s recent remark addressing Israel: “you can’t just kill your way out of solving every single national security problem”. Condemnation of Israel in the United States is steadily growing, which over time could result in reduced military aid. It is telling that Netanyahu promises to turn Israel into a “super-Sparta,” capable of confronting all the countries in the region even without American help.
Armenians escaping from starvation and approaching the British front lines during the Armenian Genocide.
Date: 1 January 2014. This photograph Q 24744 comes from the collections of the Imperial War Museums. Public Domain. Via Wikimedia Commons .
It is precisely political considerations—mobilizing the Armenian lobby in the U.S. Congress to fight against the strengthening of military-industrial cooperation with Turkey—that explain Israel’s decision to recognize the Armenian genocide. Israel is ready to grasp at any straw, as it finds itself in a difficult situation after having drawn the United States into a hopeless war against Iran. Morality and historical truth, clearly, have nothing to do with it.
The recognition of mass murder as genocide is becoming a tool of foreign policy, supposedly granting moral superiority to the heirs of the victims. The glorification of collaborators in Ukraine provokes outrage not only in Russia but also in Poland and Israel. Former colonies in Africa are demanding compensation from former metropoles in Europe for centuries of enslavement, exploitation, and mass killings. History simply cannot remain in the past.
Yakov M. Rabkin is Professor Emeritus of History at the Université of Montréal. His publications include over 300 articles and a few books: Israel in Palestine, Zionism Decoded in 101 Quotes Science between Superpowers, A Threat from Within: a Century of Jewish Opposition to Zionism, What is Modern Israel?, Demodernization: A Future in the Past and Judaïsme, islam et modernité. He did consulting work for, inter alia, OECD, NATO, UNESCO and the World Bank. E-mail: yakov.rabkin@umontreal.ca. Website: www.yakovrabkin.ca
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