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More evidence of Strained relations between Israel and Turkey

According to a report by Haaretz, Israel’s Defense Ministry has ordered an Israeli company not to fit Boeing Aircraft – purchased by Turkey – with parts required by contract.

An Israeli refusal to supply components to be fitted in an airborne early warning and control (AWACS) craft purchased by the Turkish military is straining ties between Israeli defense suppliers and American giant aerospace Boeing, Defense News reported on Thursday.

According to the report, the Defense Ministry ordered Elta, the firm contracted to supply the components, to hold two shipments over Israel’s reluctance to see Israeli-made security equipment being used by Turkey.

However, as a result of the Israeli instruction, U.S. giant Boeing may turn to other suppliers to fill the missing components, even in contracts regarding planes due to be delivered to South Korea, as well as other countries.

The report continued…

Defense News cited sources in Elta as saying that the reason for the delay was a political one, and linked to Israel’s strained ties to Turkey. A spokesperson for the Israeli firm clarified that the company was working with Boeing to release the shipments in order to ensure the delivery of the AWACS planes to Turkey by the end of the year.

On Wednesday, Turkish President Abdullah Gul also referred to the NATO early-warning radar system deployed in the country, saying that Israel could not share information received by the system since “Israel isn’t a NATO member and thus cannot enjoy NATO benefits,” calling allegations that Turkey opposed to a transfer of info “dark propaganda.”

It’s important to keep in mind that Turkey has been flying under the radar relative to its extremely fundamentalist government. The AK Party is by no means moderate and is perhaps the only entity that has benefited from the Arab Spring more than the Muslim Brotherhood.

This development is just another in a long line of signs that Turkey is not the moderate country it used to be.

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