Amid the escalating battle within the Center East—by which a lot of the Muslim world is against the Jewish State—many Israel observers have been wistfully recalling the signing of the Abraham Accords.
The landmark 2020 treaties, which normalized relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Sudan, and Morocco, had been broadly hailed as the primary heat peace between Israelis and Arabs. However they’re removed from the primary heat peace between the Jewish States and the Muslim world.
For many years, Jerusalem has maintained pleasant ties with 5 Muslim-majority Turkic states of the previous Soviet Union: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, and Azerbaijan. Of those, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan stand out as fashions of the potential of Jewish-Muslim relations.
MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP by way of Getty Photos
Each Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan are multi-cultural societies with a historic Jewish presence however little historical past of antisemitism. Jewish Silk Street merchants settled in Kazakhstan within the 15th century. In Azerbaijan, outdoors of the capital of Baku, archeologists have found evidence of a synagogue courting again to the 7th century. Azerbaijan is residence to Krasnaya Sloboda, the one remaining shtetl, or all-Jewish village, outdoors of Israel.
Azerbaijani-Jewish diaspora organizations have stated that no nation has been “as pleasant and dependable” to their Jews as Azerbaijan, whereas Kazakhstan is “a country without antisemitism,” in keeping with former Israeli Ambassador Ran Ishay. The world “must learn from the example” of Kazakh-Jewish relations, stated Malcolm Hoenlein, govt vice chairman of the Convention of Presidents of Main Jewish Organizations.
The great relations transcend tolerance to cultural appreciation. In Kazakhstan, pendants with the Hebrew phrase for all times turned a major fashion trend two years in the past. In Azerbaijan, one of many nation’s most well-known warfare heroes, Albert Agarunov—a Jew—has statues and streets named after him within the capital metropolis of Baku. At his funeral service, a rabbi was joined by a mullah to hope for his soul.
Coexistence in these nations is a part of the tradition. Throughout Soviet occasions, Jews within the Turkic Soviet Republics had been a lot much less oppressed than within the Slavic and Baltic Soviet Republics in Europe. Central Asia was a sanctuary for Ashkenazi Jews escaping the Holocaust, taking in an estimated 700,000 Jewish refugees (although there is no pretending life was straightforward for them). For Kazakhstan, the huge inflow of foreigners could not have come at a worse time. Soviet collectivization insurance policies had worn out more than a third of the Kazakh inhabitants, but all the identical, the republic took in tens of thousands of weary Jews.
These beleaguered individuals who had grown up with pogroms and had been escaping even worse Nazi persecution had been shocked to be handled as human beings. Many Jews would later escape worse Soviet oppression in republics like Russia and Ukraine by moving to the Turkic republics.
After these nations declared independence following the autumn of the Soviet Union in 1991, Israel was one of many first nations with which they established full diplomatic relations. In doing so, they discovered a vital companion in commerce, agriculture and protection.
Regardless of stress from the Muslim world because the outbreak of warfare, each Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan haven’t solely maintained relations with Israel however elevated them. Even after Iran known as on Muslim nations to cease sending Israel oil, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan supplied the Jewish state with 60% of its wants. Baku has even increased its oil exports to Israel by 28%. This yr, Professional-Palestinian protestors vandalized the headquarters of Azerbaijan’s state oil firm Socar had its Istanbul headquarters by pro-Palestinian protestors. Undeterred, final month (Sept 26.), Baku signed memorandums that may deepen protection ties between the 2 nations.
Whereas different world leaders stored silent, Kazakhstani President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev was the primary Central Asian chief to sentence the Oct. 7th bloodbath. On Oct. 13, he said that terrorist ways had been by no means justified. Later that month, Kazakhstan demanded an unconditional launch of all of the hostages held by Hamas. And prior to now yr, as battle has raged in Gaza, Kazakhstan has solely elevated cooperation with Israel. In August, Astana and Jerusalem discussed deepening tourism and even visa-free journey for Kazakhstani residents touring to Israel.
Kazakhstan’s tolerance has roots in its historical past. Throughout Stalin’s rule, Kazakhstan was handled as a dumping grounds for undesirables from different nations. Moscow deported quite a few ethnic teams en masse that it nervous would possibly develop into a separatist risk. Due to that coverage, Kazakhstan has develop into the house of 124 ethnicities together with many not native to the area like Ukrainians, Koreans, Ingush, Turks, Greeks, Germans and Tatars.
Many Kazakhstanis from various cultures develop up celebrating one another’s holidays. Muslims typically paint eggs for Easter and Christians attend post-Ramadan feasts. This tolerance has unfold to Jews as nicely.
Trendy Azerbaijan’s assist of Israel began with the nation’s forefather — Heydar Aliyev. Aliyev noticed the potential advantages of cooperation with the Jewish State. Throughout his presidency, Israeli-Azerbaijani relations blossomed. In accordance with former Israeli Minister of Protection Avigdor Lieberman, “no world chief amazed me as a lot as Aliyev.”
Aliyev’s assist for the Jewish state was solely surpassed by his assist for the Jewish folks. Below his rule, the Azerbaijani authorities returned Jewish buildings confiscated by Soviet authorities, restored synagogues and sponsored growth in Krasnaya Sloboda.
Aliyev’s son, Ilham Aliyev, the present Azerbaijani president, has stored up his father’s pro-Israel insurance policies. Since he took energy in 2003, Azerbaijan and Israel have increased cooperation within the spheres of intelligence, protection, agriculture, infrastructure and power.
The Aliyev household’s assist for Israel and the Jewish group has not escaped the world’s antisemites. Heydar Aliyev, the forefather of contemporary Azerbaijan, was accused by his enemies together with Russian-backed Armenian teams of being a Jew. His son, present president Ilham Aliyev, is usually featured in Nazi-style, antisemitic Iranian cartoons, depicting him with a big nostril, sidelocks and Jewish prayer cap.
Certainly, Iran has long targeted Azerbaijan partly over its relations with Israel. Kazakhstan had beforehand escaped such scrutiny, however after Oct. 7, Iran attempted assaults towards Israelis and Jews within the nation. In August, Tehran hired a Tajik nationwide to torch Jewish Company places of work and the Or Avner Jewish Heart in Almaty.
These makes an attempt are worrying. Whereas the governments of each nations are dedicated to tolerance, marginal Islamist teams attempt to indoctrinate their populations with an extremist ideology that preaches hatred.
However at the moment, these nations stay beacons of tolerance in a growingly antisemitic world.
Joseph Epstein is the director for legislative affairs on the Endowment for Center East Reality (EMET), a fellow on the Yorktown Institute, and a analysis fellow on the Start Sadat Heart for Strategic Research.
The views expressed on this article are the author’s personal.
