Description
This paper analyzes the triangular relationship between Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Israel during the Gaza war, focusing on how Ankara has maintained its privileged alliance with Baku despite Azerbaijan’s ongoing strategic and military cooperation with Israel. Under President Erdoğan, Turkey has adopted an increasingly confrontational stance toward Israel, culminating in a complete diplomatic rupture during the Gaza conflict. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan has continued to strengthen its ties with Tel Aviv, particularly in defense, intelligence, and energy. This study explores how Turkey reconciles this apparent contradiction, upholding the bir millet, iki devlet (“one nation, two states”) narrative with Azerbaijan while intensifying its rhetorical and political opposition to Israel. By framing this paradox within the broader dynamics of Middle Eastern geopolitics and Turkish identity politics, the paper aims to explain the mechanism of strategic “forgettability,” a deliberate form of selective oblivion that enables Turkish foreign policy to maintain coherence by disregarding deep ideological contradictions.
