Azerbaijan’s Entry into Israeli Waters May Open New Export Routes with Turkey

The decision by SOCAR, Azerbaijan’s state oil company, to press ahead with a gas exploration license in Israeli waters marks another significant step in the ever-deepening partnership between Israel and Azerbaijan. In addition to the economic opportunity it provides to discover new gas, the involvement of SOCAR carries significant strategic weight in a region where energy projects can forge new ties or rekindle old rivalries. SOCAR’s role as the project’s operator may facilitate a more stable multilateral energy framework in the Eastern Mediterranean due to Azerbaijan’s close relations with Turkey, which enable it to serve as a mediator. Azerbaijan’s involvement may also offer Israel a viable route for future gas exports to Turkey that buffers the volatile relations between Jerusalem and Ankara, mirroring the current oil trade arrangements between the sides.

Greece Is Keen to Expand Ties with Israel

On March 30, 2025, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis met with President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem. Fifteen years after the historic visit to the Israeli capital by then-premier George Papandreou, which paved the way for the ongoing Greek-Israeli friendship, the two countries are continuing to advance their strategic partnership. The necessity for closer ties with the Jewish State has become a critical element of Greek foreign and military policy, and there is political consensus on the value of the relationship. New defense synergies that will likely complement older agreements are currently on the agenda.

BESA Post-Soviet Conflicts Research Digest No. 18 (March 2025)

In March 2025, the PSCRP’s publications covered socio- and geopolitical developments in the South Caucasus, Central Asia, Russia, and Belarus.

Disarming Syria Under the Al-Julani Regime – The Biological Weapons Dimension

While the Syrian chemical weapons program has been targeted and degraded since 2013, almost nothing has been done about Syria’s biological weapons program. The recent regime change in Syria could provide an opportunity to finally locate and destroy Syria’s biological weapons program.

The Complex Dynamics of Turkey’s “Savior” Image

Turkey's involvement in Syria is having an effect on its regional standing, and is shaping an image of Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as a Muslim savior. Turkey is exploiting the instability in Syria to achieve its own strategic objectives, which primarily include a curbing of the Kurdish threat, an expansion of Ankara’s regional influence, and a positioning of Turkey as a protective Muslim power.

Trump 2.0: How Will His Second Term Affect the World, the Region, and Israel

North Korea’s Air Force Adds AWACS Platforms to Aircraft

The North Korean Air Force has installed AWACS/AEW platforms on several Russian transport aircraft. If the installation is based on the Chinese KJ2000, there is a good chance that Israeli know-how has reached the North Koreans indirectly.

Hamas’s Plan to Turn Gaza Into Another Lebanon

Hamas seeks to end the war while maintaining its military control over Gaza, mirroring Hezbollah’s pre-war dominance in Lebanon. Israel must not allow this to happen, even if Egypt pushes for it.

BESA Post-Soviet Conflicts Research Digest No. 17 (February 2025)

The PSCRP reports in February 2025, have covered the recent political developments in Central Asia, South Caucasus, and Russia. The PSCR program at the BESA Center is further continuing its mission of analyzing the most important sociopolitical developments in the post-Soviet region.

“Assessment Is Nothing, Assessing Is Everything” – How to Make Intelligence Assessment Dynamic and Effective

The IDF’s current mechanism for determining and providing intelligence assessments rigidifies the thinking of intelligence analysts, and increases the risk that they will not recognize changes in the behavioral patterns of the adversary that affect the predictive ability and relevance of the forecast. Providing assessments should be the beginning of the process, not the end. A structured, open, and ongoing discussion of an assessment can make both the process and the product more dynamic in the face of changing conditions.

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