Israel pushes back on US plan to coordinate military moves with Turkey in Syria
Jerusalem fears coordination with Ankara could constrain its freedom to strike as tensions rise over Turkey’s expanding role in Syria
Israel is resisting efforts by the United States to create a deconfliction mechanism to coordinate Israeli and Turkish military actions in Syria.
US Special Envoy Tom Barrack has been leading the effort to prevent unintended military confrontations in Syria between Israel and Turkey.
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Washington wants fewer surprises and more coordination. However, Jerusalem is worried that any mechanism would eventually evolve into an intelligence sharing framework that would restrict Israel's freedom of action in Syria.
Israel prefers that Turkey be prevented from permanent deployments to Syria altogether, rather than coordinate military activity with Turkey.
Some officials prefer a direct relationship with Syria, for example Mossad chief Roman Goffman, who called Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, to discuss the Turkish deployment prior to Israeli strikes earlier this week.
Deep distrust of Syria’s new regime and its growing Turkish influence is also driving the resistance. According to sources, there has been no direct line of communication between Jerusalem and Ankara this week.
The Turkish Defense Ministry denied having a military presence at the airbase before or during Israel’s recent strike, but acknowledged that Ankara "continues to support Syria and its efforts to develop its military capabilities and infrastructure."
Defense Minister Israel Katz explicitly warned Turkey about further expansion into Syria, saying, "Erdogan is dragging Turkey into dangerous adventures in Syria. Israel will not allow any actor to threaten its security."