DRILLS CANCELED AFTER TURKEY EXCLUDES ISRAEL
By SEBNEM ARSU and ISABEL KERSHNER

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October 11, 2009

ISTANBUL — A multinational air force exercise that was supposed to
take place in Turkey has been postponed indefinitely after the Turks
asked Israel not to participate, officials said Sunday, in a sign of
the strained relations between the two allies.

New York Times

The 11-day exercise, which takes place every few years, was supposed
to start on Monday.

A statement on the Turkish military’s Web site said that the
exercise would take place on a national level, but that international
participation had been canceled after "international negotiations
conducted by the Turkish Foreign Ministry." Military officials declined
to elaborate.

A Foreign Ministry official, who requested anonymity because of the
delicacy of the matter, said the international exercise was postponed
for technical, not political, reasons.

But another government official, who also spoke anonymously, said,
"We can say that Turkey has reservations against the participation
of Israel."

The Israeli military said the exercise had been postponed "as a result
of Turkey’s decision to change the list of participating countries,
thus excluding Israel."

Israel and Turkey have long been strategic allies with strong military
ties. Last year, Turkey mediated indirect negotiations between Israel
and Syria, and this summer Turkey and Israel carried out a joint
naval exercise.

But diplomatic relations between the two nations have eroded,
particularly since Israel’s three-week military offensive in Gaza
last winter, in which hundreds of Palestinian civilians died. Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey accused Israel of "savagery"
and crimes against humanity. Israel said it was acting in self-defense
to halt Palestinian rocket fire.

Separately, Mr. Erdogan said Sunday that Armenia must withdraw from
the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, a day after of enmity.

Sebnem Arsu reported from Istanbul, and Isabel Kershner from Jerusalem.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress