Michael Rubin: Erdogan’s Turkey Is Not a Friend

http://forward.com/articles/128501/

But in recent years Erdogan has shown his true colors, ratcheting up the hostility toward Israel and extending a friendly hand to Hamas. The Turkish government’s behavior during the recent flotilla affair is consistent with the path Erdogan has forged.

The Turkish government voiced its clear support for the Gaza flotilla’s effort to break Israel’s blockade of Hamas. In light of Turkey’s mounting hostility toward Israel, it is not surprising that Israeli commandos came under fierce assault on a ship owned by a Turkish Islamist charity allied with Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party.

[...]

It is in this context that Turkey’s official support for the Gaza flotilla becomes so problematic: Not only were the ships financed by a Turkish charity that belongs to a Saudi umbrella organization linked by the U.S. Treasury Department to terrorism, but if the ships succeed in opening a trade route bypassing Israeli inspections, they could end up giving Hamas an unfettered supply of weaponry.

I think it's time to kick Turkey out of NATO.  Better yet, just end NATO completely.  I think West Germany is probably safe from invasion by the East (or it's too late to stop them, depending on your point of view.)  The US can have a separate alliance with the Baltic states to keep Russia in check.  Other than that, what good is NATO?

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