EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
[ISRAEL-ALMA.ORG] The months of May-June 2026 were marked by a significant acceleration across all axes of Turkish activity – military, economic, support for terrorism, and rhetorical escalation – as Ankara becomes an increasingly dominant actor in Syria with each passing month.
On the force-build-up front, Syrian forces participated for the first time in EFES-2026 – the Turkish Air Force’s annual flagship military exercise, held from April 11 to May 22, 2026 in Izmir – alongside forces from 50 countries. On the sidelines, Ankara announced an expansion of its military support to Syria: training, operational planning, and logistical assistance.
On May 11, 2026, the Turkish warship TCG Meltem made the first-ever official visit of its kind to the Syrian port of Latakia. In addition, Turkish arms exports broke records – a warship was sold for the first time to a NATO member – Romania – on June 20, joining the KAAN fighter jet export deal with Indonesia (48 aircraft worth $10 billion), a deal signed in June 2025.
On the economic front, Ankara is advancing the Hejaz Railway corridor through Syria to Saudi Arabia – a move analysts view as undermining Israel’s regional role, as it creates a direct overland corridor from Turkey through Syria and Jordan to Saudi Arabia, competing with Israel as a regional transit hub, as envisioned by the American IMEC (India-Middle East-Europe) corridor initiative.
Turkey’s Trade Minister set a target of $5 billion in trade with Damascus in June.
On the terror axis, the IDF and Shin Bet revealed on June 21, 2026 that five senior Hamas figures were operating to produce attacks in Judea and Samaria directly from Istanbul – with Erdoğan’s open backing, as he promised the organization: “Just as we protect our own children, so we will protect you.”
On the rhetorical front, Jerusalem–Ankara relations deteriorated to a new low: Erdoğan declared on June 10, 2026 that Israeli strikes on Lebanon “now endanger Turkey as well.”
Turkey is no longer merely a regional actor – it may be becoming the central strategic axis threatening Israel in the future.
| Israel knows what to do about threats. |