Yedioth Ahronoth: Israel is concern about the return talks about the Qatari gas project via Syria and Türkiye as tension rising with the latter

Growing talk of a possible rapprochement between Ankara and Damascus, after years of estrangement due to the Syrian war, is raising concerns in Israeli circles.

This concern comes against the backdrop of reports of the revival of strategic projects to transport natural gas from Qatar to Europe via Syrian and Turkish territory, a project analyst considers a threat to Israel’s position in the regional energy market.

According to the Israeli Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, Tel Aviv is concerned about the possibility of Syria and Türkiye becoming a vital corridor for exporting Gulf gas to Europe.

This could weaken Israel’s influence on the energy front and alter the economic balance of power in the region.

The Qatari gas pipeline project, first proposed in 2009, aimed to transport gas from Doha to Europe via Syria and Türkiye.

However, the outbreak of the Syrian war led to the project being frozen, especially after the collapse of the former regime, which had ruled for more than six decades.

The Israeli newspaper noted that this project has recently returned to the spotlight, amid signs of a Turkish-Syrian rapprochement and growing talk of regional energy partnerships.

The escalating tensions between Israel and Türkiye, recently has many reasons, one of them is the issue of Ankara establish a military base in Central Syria.

Türkiye’s increasing openness to the new Syrian government, is seen by Israel as a direct strategic threat.

The decision-making circles Israel is lacking a clear plan for dealing with the Syrian issue, as Ankara won’t allow Israel to become the primary player on the Syrian scene without competition.

According to Amira Oron, the former Israeli ambassador to Ankara, she warned of the danger of ignoring Türkiye’s role in Syria’s future, considering that Türkiye plays a crucial role in the country’s stability.

She said, “It’s better for Israel to rely on diplomatic channels to communicate with Ankara, rather than entering into conflicts that could lead to unintended confrontations”.

Oron emphasized that marginalizing Türkiye in the Syrian arena could weaken Israel’s ability to influence future regional developments, especially in light of the rapid moves to reshape energy alliances in the Middle East.