ISRAEL’S POLICY RESPONSES TO EGYPT IN THE POST-MUBARAK ERA A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES OF MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY BY BÜŞRA N. ÖZGÜLER IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE IN THE DEPARTMENT OF MIDDLE EAST STUDIES FEBRUARY 2017 Approval of the Graduate School of Social Sciences Prof. Dr. Tülin Gençöz Director I certify that this thesis satisfies all the requirements as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Assist. Prof. Derya Göçer Akder Head of Department This is to certify that we have read this thesis and that in our opinion it is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Prof. Dr. Özlem Tür Küçükkaya Supervisor Examining Committee Members Assist. Prof. Derya Göçer Akder (METU, MES) Prof. Dr. Özlem Tür Küçükkaya (METU, IR) Assoc. Prof. Burak Bilgehan Özpek (TOBB-ETU, Pol. Sc. IR) I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all material and results that are not original to this work. Name, Last name : Büşra N. Özgüler Signature : iii ABSTRACT ISRAEL’S POLICY RESPONSES TO EGYPT IN THE POST-MUBARAK ERA Özgüler, Büşra N. M.S., Department of Middle East Studies Supervisor : Prof. Dr. Özlem Tür Küçükkaya February 2017, 159 pages In this study, Israel’s policy responses to Egypt in the post-Mubarak era is examined though adoption of the defensive realist perspective. This study endeavors to explain Israel’s strategic silence in conjuncture with its changing threat perceptions and, by extension, its seemingly fluctuating levels of anxiety. By analyzing the discourse of Israeli political and military leaders, it is revealed that Israel perceived the events in Egypt negatively within the environment of uncertainty. At the same time, considering the country’s objective of maintaining national security and strategic interests, Israel preferred policy of silence during the period of the Egyptian Revolution and its aftermath. Keywords: Israel, Egypt, defensive realism, strategic silence iv ÖZ MÜBAREK SONRASI DÖNEMDE İSRAİL’İN MISIR’A KARŞI İZLEDİĞİ POLİTİKALAR Özgüler, Büşra N. Yüksek Lisans, Orta Doğu Araştırmaları Bölümü Tez Yöneticisi : Prof. Dr. Özlem Tür Küçükkaya Şubat 2017, 159 sayfa Bu çalışma, İsrail’in Mübarek sonrası dönemde Mısır’a karşı izlediği politikaları savunmacı realist bakış açısıyla inceler. Bu çalışma, İsrail’in bu dönemde değişen tehdit algılarına ve buna bağlı olarak farklı seviyeler gösteren endişelerine rağmen stratejik sessizlik politikası izlemesini açıklamaya çalışır. İsrail’in siyasi ve askeri liderlerinin söylem analizi yapıldığında ülkenin, belirsizlik atmosferi içinde gelişen Mısır’daki olayları olumsuz şekilde algıladığı açığa çıkar. Bununla birlikte, ulusal güvenliğini ve stratejik çıkarlarını koruma hedeflerini göz önünde bulunduran İsrail’in, Mısır Devrimi sırasında ve sonrasında sessizlik politikası tercih ettiği görülür. Anahtar Kelimeler: İsrail, Mısır, savunmacı realizm, stratejik sessizlik v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my absolute appreciation, first of all, to my supervisor Prof. Dr. Özlem Tür Küçükkaya for her constructive guidance, critical comments, and engagement throughout the process of crafting this master thesis. She made this a true learning experience. I would also like to thank Assoc. Prof. Burak Bilgehen Özpek and Assist. Prof. Derya Göçer Akder for the valuable time they allocated to providing percipient suggestions and contributing to the completion of this work. I would like to extend my deep gratitude to Amb. (R.) Özdem Sanberk for his continued advice and the inspiration he has infused into my academic and professional work. I am particularly grateful for the encouragement given by Dr. Osman Bahadır Dinçer. He helped me without reservation at every step of this process. I wish to thank to Mehmet Hecan for his useful suggestions to me during my master studies. I would also like to offer my special thanks to Ahmet Gümüşbaş for reading my thesis and giving acute feedback. I want to extend my heart-felt gratitude especially to my admirable family and loved ones for their continued belief in me. My mother and father have constantly supported me. My sisters and my brother have provided me with patient motivation. I would like to thank Atty. Hayrullah Başol for his invaluable discussions on Israel in academic, political, and intellectual aspects. I have also greatly benefitted from the friendship and assistance of Fatma, Betül, and Serap. After months of working on this project I could not possibly come up with a full list of all the people who have supported me in the process and helped me keep myself together when I fell apart. Though I cannot name everyone here, my thanks goes out to all of them. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT .................................................................................................... IV ÖZ ..................................................................................................................... V ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................. VI TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................ VII LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................ X LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................... XI LIST OF GRAPHS ......................................................................................... XII CHAPTER INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1 1.1. RESEARCH QUESTIONS ................................................................................. 3 1.2. HYPOTHESIS ................................................................................................. 4 1.3. METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................ 5 1.4. LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................... 9 1.5. DEFENSIVE REALISM .................................................................................. 20 1.5.1. Israel and defensive realism ............................................................... 26 1.5.2. Israel’s anxiety and defensive realism ............................................... 29 1.6. CONCLUSION .............................................................................................. 30 BACKGROUND OF ISRAEL-EGYPT RELATIONS (1948-2010) .................. 33 2.1. STATE OF WAR BETWEEN ISRAEL AND EGYPT ............................................ 33 2.1.1. Closure of the Suez Canal and the Straits of Tiran as a casus belli ... 33 2.1.2. Imbalance of powers .......................................................................... 37 2.2. QUEST FOR PEACE AND THE 1979 TREATY ................................................. 39 2.2.1. Security in the Sinai Peninsula ........................................................... 41 2.2.2. Strategic and economic benefits......................................................... 42 2.2.3. Normalization process ........................................................................ 42 2.3. STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN ISRAEL AND MUBARAK’S EGYPT ....... 44 vii 2.3.1. Cooperation against political Islam and Hamas ...................................... 45 2.3.2. The economy’s supplementary role in cooperation ........................... 48 2.3.3. Conclusion .......................................................................................... 49 ISRAEL AND EGYPT IN THE POST-MUBAREK ERA (2011-2015) ........... 52 3.1. BREAKING POINT: EGYPTIAN REVOLUTION ................................................ 53 3.1.1. Islamists hijacked the revolution ........................................................ 54 3.1.2. Influences on the Palestinian cause .................................................... 56 3.1.3. Egypt’s hesitation over the 1979 Peace Treaty .................................. 58 3.1.4. Lack of control in the Sinai Peninsula................................................ 59 3.1.5. MB’s economic mindset ..................................................................... 61 3.2. MAJOR THREAT PERCEPTIONS HELD BY ISRAEL: HIGH ANXIETY ............... 62 3.2.1. Political Islamist threat ....................................................................... 63 3.2.2. Palestinian issue and Gaza ................................................................. 64 3.2.3. Abolition of the Peace treaty .............................................................. 66 3.2.4. Threats from the Sinai Peninsula........................................................ 68 3.2.5. Economic concerns............................................................................. 70 3.3. MILITARY COUP IN EGYPT, BACKSPIN WITH ISRAEL .................................. 72 3.3.1. Reconstruction of new-old actor: the Egyptian military .................... 73 3.3.2. Fight against terrorism in the Sinai and Gaza .................................... 75 3.3.3. Energy cooperation............................................................................. 77 3.4. CONCLUSION .............................................................................................. 77 ISRAELI
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