Israel: Turkey calls off joint air force drill

Turkey has canceled an annual joint air force drill that was to have taken place this week because it opposed Israeli participation, the Israeli military said, in the latest sign of deteriorating relations between the two countries.

Turkey, a secular country ruled by an Islamic-oriented party, had long been Israel's best friend in the Muslim world. But ties have cooled sharply over Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's sharp criticism of Israel's winter war in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military said the Oct. 12-23 drill was delayed indefinitely "because of Turkey's decision to change the list of participating countries, thus excluding Israel."

The exercise was to have been the sixth annual maneuver of its kind. The military said it was to have included U.S., Italian and NATO forces.

Israeli defense officials said Ankara canceled the drill after the U.S. pulled out over the Turkish decision to blackball Israel.

They spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to discuss the matter with the media.

Israel and Turkey have wide-ranging military, economic and strategic ties, and last year Ankara hosted months of indirect talks between Israel and Syria after an eight-year breakdown.

But Erdogan's criticism of Israel's Gaza war thrust Turkey into the role of championing Gaza's Hamas rulers, a militant group shunned by Israel and the West. Tensions peaked when the Turkish leader stormed out of a high-profile conference where he confronted Israel's president over steep Palestinian civilian casualties.

Palestinian officials and human rights groups say more than 900 civilians died in the offensive, which was launched to halt years of rocket fire from Gaza on southern Israel.

Israel disputes that number but has provided no evidence to back up that claim.

The Israeli air force last conducted joint maneuvers with Turkey several months before the war broke out in December.

Turkish-Israeli ties have been tested in the past by earlier attacks on Palestinians but strong security interests helped to mend fences.

Turkey and Israel grew close in the mid-1990s, their alliance based on mutual fears of Iran and Syria. Israel has supplied hundreds of millions of dollars of military hardware to Turkey over the years, the two countries conduct joint naval exercises and the Israeli air force trains over Turkish airspace.

But since Erdogan's government came to power in 2003, Turkey's ties with Iran and Hamas have warmed. Turkey believes the Islamic militant Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, must play a key role in the Palestinian territories.

The Turkish exercise was to have coincided with the launch this week of Israeli military maneuvers with the U.S. that are to be the largest joint drill the two allies have ever conducted.

The Juniper Falcon exercise, which is to be carried out in Israel, is meant to simulate an attack on the Jewish state from all its enemies, including Iran.

Israel considers Iran to be its biggest threat because of its nuclear program and missiles capable of striking the Jewish state. Repeated references to Israel's destruction by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad have only fueled Israeli concerns.

Israel does not believe Iran's claims that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes rather than weapons production.