Turkey's pro-Hamas position following the Israeli assault on Gaza has strained its relations with Israel. The most dramatic instance of this was the confrontation of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Turkey's prime minister, with Shimon Peres, Israel's president, at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Despite the theatrics and the surge of anti-Israeli and anti-Semitic sentiment in Turkey, the government's positions suggest that Turkey still sees a role for itself in Middle East peacemaking, wants Israel to be more concerned about regional instability, and wishes to work with the United States if and when the new administration reengages with the region.