The comparative analysis of Türkiye-İsrael trade relations

Mass Jewish immigration to Palestine, which began in the early 1900s, accelerated with the genocide perpetrated by Nazi Germany during World War II, and as a result, the State of Israel gained independence in 1948. Immediately after independence, Israel sought to strengthen its relations with non-Arab countries in the Middle East, Turkey and Iran. Turkey, in turn, occasionally reciprocated Israel's attempts to develop relations within the framework of its Middle East policy. However, as a result of the civilian massacres perpetrated by Israel in Palestine and Lebanon, Turkey suspended these relations at certain intervals. Although bilateral relations reached a serious breaking point after the Mavi Marmara incident in the 2010s, they made significant progress after the issue of the Eastern Mediterranean Gas Fields emerged. During this period, the two countries saw an increase in trade. In 2023, Israel's operations against Gaza drew criticism from the international community. Turkey, in particular, strongly condemned the attacks and imposed trade sanctions on Israel on certain product groups on April 9, 2024, and on May 2, 2024, the restrictions were extended to all product groups. Israel's economic indicators are stable, and its exports are dominated by hightechnology products. However, its trade deficit with Turkey is quite high. This has significantly impacted Israel's trade sanctions. The study focused on Turkey's product groups (72 Iron and Steel), 73 Articles of Iron and Steel, 87 Motor Land Vehicles, 85 Electrical Machinery and Equipment, 29 Organic Chemicals, 90 Optical, Photographic, and Cinematographic Measurement and Control Devices, and 30 Pharmaceutical Products). Trade relations between Turkey and Israel were examined through statistical analysis in these product groups. Simple linear regression was used in the analysis, and statistical significance (p < 0.05) was checked using ANOVA and coefficient tables. The analysis found that Turkey had a foreign trade surplus with Israel in product groups 72, 73, 87, and 85, and that this situation varied significantly over time. In product groups 29, 90 and 30, it has been determined that Turkey has a foreign trade deficit with Israel that varies significantly over time.