Israel wants to reach deal with Turkey, but ‘can’t rule out’ threat, says Netanyahu

Israel wants to reach an arrangement with Turkey, says Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but can’t rule out the country becoming a threat to the Jewish state.

“I hope that threat doesn’t materialize, but we can’t rule it out,” Netanyahu says during an interview with the Abu Ali Express Telegram account.

Relations between the two countries — formerly close allies — collapsed once again during the two-year war in Gaza, as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan praised the Hamas terror group and accused Israel of committing genocide.

“We prefer a modus vivendi with Turkey,” Netanyahu continues. “They’re very stubborn and speak in an extreme way, and we push back on it. But in practice, we prevented their entry into southern Syria. They wanted to come in near our border — I said this will not happen. We also didn’t want them entering central Syria at the T-4 base — and we even struck that airfield.”

At the same time, says Netanyahu, Israel “maintains dialogue beyond the headlines, telling them there’s mutual interest in avoiding confrontation.”

Despite the attempts by Israel to find ways to reduce tensions, Israel’s military force design moving forward will be affected by what capabilities Turkey develops, he says.

“We do not intend to relinquish our military superiority,” Netanyahu stresses. “We’re not seeking enemies, but we won’t let any country in the region threaten us.”

Asked about the possibility of Turkey receiving the F-35 from the US after Saudi Arabia, Netanyahu says, “That possibility is extremely distant, if it even exists at all.”