Turkey skips WEF over Middle East stance

In 2009, Recep Tayyip Erdogan stormed out of a WEF debate with then-Israel President Shimon Peres. Keystone / Laurent Gillieron

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan asked his country’s officials to skip the World Economic Forum in Davos this week over its organisers’ stance on Israel’s war against Hamas, according to people familiar with the matter. 

Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek was planning to attend the annual gathering of political and business leaders until Erdogan — who’s criticised Israel’s conduct of its war in Gaza — stopped him from going, the people said, asking not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter. 

Erdogan’s decision to withdraw his top officials from the summit complicates Turkey’s efforts to reconnect with global investors after years of unconventional policies had driven them away.  

The no-show in Davos follows another change of plans by Simsek in recent days. The minister, appointed in June as part of a government shakeup by Erdogan, was set to attend a central bank-organised meeting with investors in New York last week but instead joined it virtually. 

Erdogan’s and Simsek’s offices both declined to comment. The World Economic Forum didn’t immediately respond to a request seeking comment on Monday.  

Klaus Schwab, the Davos forum’s founder and executive chairman, condemned Hamas’ “terrorist attacks against Israel” after the group killed around 1,200 people in a surprise raid in October. While he also called for measures to protect the civilian population of Gaza, the statement angered Turkish politicians.  

Turkey – unlike the US and the European Union – doesn’t consider Hamas a terrorist organisation. 

It’s not the first time Erdogan has used Davos to take a political stand on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  

In 2009, the Turkish leader stormed out of a debate with Israel’s then-President Shimon Peres over its military operation in Gaza the previous year, and vowed not to return. 

Erdogan has never been back, though Turkish officials began attending again after a few years. 

Erdogan has criticised Israel for the death toll in Gaza and defended Hamas as a group fighting for Palestinian rights, but stopped short of cutting ties with the Jewish state. Turkey is one of the few countries in the region to recognise Israel. 

The depth of Turkey’s strained relations with Israel was underscored on Sunday when an Israeli footballer playing for a Turkish club was arrested for an anti-Hamas goal celebration. While he was released, Turkish media said he’d be deported on Monday. The incident sparked outrage in Israel.  

Earlier this month, Turkey detained dozens of people for allegedly spying on behalf of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, after Ankara warned it would respond to any plots to kill members of Hamas on its soil. 

Israel’s offensive in Gaza began after Hamas attacked from the territory on October 7. Much of the Gaza Strip has since been reduced to rubble and more than 24,000 people have been killed, according to health officials there. 

©2024 Bloomberg L.P. 

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