Turkish media reported
this week that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's apology has paved the
way for a massive joint pipeline project carrying natural gas from
Israel to Turkey and from there to Europe. There is no overestimating
the influence joint economic interests can have on stable relations
between countries.
It is said that during a
private conversation, Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion once thanked
French President Charles de Gaulle for France's help to Israel,
attributing it to the strong alliance and friendship between the two
countries. To which De Gaulle replied, "France has no friends, only
interests."
Turkey too has
interests.
Despite Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's seeming
attempts in recent years to turn Israel from a friend to an enemy,
especially since the Mavi Marmara incident, it turns out that our common
economic interests have been maintained and even gained momentum. It
would be safe to say that beneath the outward hostility, a lot of
positive energy has been flowing between the two countries.
Energy, as in energy
markets, that is. Over six months ago a modest ceremony was held at the
Azrieli Center, during which the Edeltech Group Ltd. marked the securing
of financing for two electricity cogeneration power plants in Ashdod
and Ramat Negev. These stations are expected to produce about 200
megawatts, on top of the 830 megawatts to be produced by the Dorad power
plant in Ashkelon, which is in the final stages of construction.
Two additional power
plants are in the offing, Solad and Tamar, which will add about 200
megawatts to the market. Together, these power plants would increase
Israel's electricity producing ability by about 10 percent.
The senior partner of
Edeltech, Ahmet Zorlu, is the owner of Zorlu Holding, the second largest
holding company in Turkey. Zorlu of course took part in the ceremony,
along with his partners and family members. Israel's success is his
gain. Every intelligent person knows that Zorlu, like many others who do
business in Israel, invests his money in Israel with the permission of
the Turkish government. Zorlu Holding is the company that, along with
Edeltech Group Ltd., has pushed for the pipeline exporting gas from
Israel to Turkey. If and when it is established, the pipeline could
carry gas worth $5 billion to $6 billion per year. Turkey would benefit
from the ready availability of gas it lacks at present, as well as earn
money from the transport of gas to Europe. Israel would benefit from an
efficient, quick and cheap solution compared to the alternative, which
involves liquefying gas for export.
The economic advantage
is clear, as are the strategic and diplomatic advantages. We should
remember that the East Mediterranean Gas Company's agreement to sell gas
by pipeline from Egypt to Israel is considered the anchor of our
relations with that country. The weakness of the agreement from Israel's
point of view is that Egypt has control over the gas valve. The great
thing about the Israeli-Turkish pipeline is that both countries have
control. Israel has the right to open and close the valve while Turkey
controls access to Europe. This is a win-win situation.
When President Barack
Obama melted our hearts with his statement "you are not alone," he
repeated De Gaulle's lesson to Ben-Gurion: Countries do not have friends
or enemies, they have interests. Obama made the phone call, Netanyahu
said what was required, and Erdoğan played hard to get. Thank God common
interests prevailed, and the new pipeline will transport an abundance
of positive energy.
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