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As tensions flared up between Azerbaijan and Armenia two weeks ago, Israel unexpectedly found herself backing the same side as the Turks and the Syrian rebels. Coupled by arms deals with Azerbaijan, and a long history and bad blood with Armenia, it’s not surprising to see Turkey, along with her Syrian allies, backing the Azeris in this conflict. Seeing Israel backing the Azeris, on the other hand, came somewhat as a surprise to many Hellenic nationals and Westerners alike. Similar to Turkey, Israel inked arms deals with Azerbaijan and maintains robust trade relations with the Muslim country (Israel is Azerbaijan’s third-largest export country after Italy and Turkey). However, it is not history that led Israel into Azerbaijan’s hands; rather, it’s the present and the future.
Since the establishment of modern-day Israel in 1948, the nation has been in a state of emergency and has constantly been under existential threat. Therefore, Israel’s foreign policy has always viewed through the glasses of realpolitik, especially when evaluating relations with surrounding countries. It helps explain Israeli decision-making on the international stage, not being a party to the Non-Proliferation Treaty, never signing or ratifying the Biological Weapons Convention and never ratifying the Chemical Weapons Convention, to mention a few. Currently, one of Israel’s top existential threats is the Iranian nuclear program.
By maintaining close relations with Azerbaijan, Iran’s neighbor, it grants the Jerusalem access to one of Iran’s borders. Yes, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates are neighboring countries of Iran as well, but they have the Persian Gulf separating them. Azerbaijan shares a land border with Iran—a much more valuable attribute that allows Israel to execute preemptive and preventive attacks against Iran. When the Mossad secretly snuck out of Iran with the entire nuclear archives, it was believed that the Israeli agents smuggled it out through the border with Azerbaijan. There have also been reports in the past claiming that Azerbaijan would allow the Israeli Air Force to use its territory as a launching pad for an airstrike against Iran.
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