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Regional Implications of the Failed Coup in Turkey
(Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies-Bar-Ilan University) Col. (res.) Dr. Eran Lerman - In the wake of the failed coup in Turkey, the effective absence of Turkey from the battlefield is keenly felt - as is the decision by Erdogan to disable all operations from Incirlik AFB. Tensions between Turkey and the U.S. have been rising for a while, as the Obama administration came reluctantly to the conclusion that the Kurdish forces in northern Syria (and their brethren in Iraq) are the most committed fighting force in the war on the ISIS "Caliphate." Moreover, Erdogan's persistent demand that Fethullah Gulen be extradited - a demand with which the U.S. is unlikely to comply - is adding fuel to the fire. Meanwhile, relations between Turkey and the Sunni Arab "forces of stability" in the region, mainly Saudi Arabia and Egypt, are fast going from bad to worse. The Egyptians and the Saudis could hardly contain their glee when news of the coup first emerged; or their disappointment when Erdogan prevailed. The writer, former deputy for foreign policy and international affairs at Israel's National Security Council, served for over 20 years in IDF Military Intelligence.