In the days preceding the military coup in Egypt, the Turkish press discussed at large the Gezi Park riots in Istanbul and their impact on the future of Turkey. At the time, the Turkish local media was swept by a wave of anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli statements made by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his ministers, who accused Israel of fanning the riot flames.

There were those who rushed to lament the reconciliation process between Turkey and Israel launched with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s apology to Erdogan on March 23. This process reached an impasse following two rounds of talks on the sum Israel was to pay in compensation to the families of the Turkish nationals killed and wounded in the May 2010 raid on the Gaza-bound Mavi Marmara flotilla.

However, the recent events in Egypt have changed the game in the Middle East. With the ouster of Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, Ankara has lost an important ally and it thus has to re-evaluate its interests in the eastern Mediterranean. When Morsi was elected to lead Egypt as the Muslim Brotherhood representative, Erdogan reshaped his policy in the region.

The Turkish premier, who sees himself as the guardian of Hamas in Gaza, found in Cairo a strategic fulcrum, which he planned to use to wield his influence. To consolidate his ties with the new Egyptian regime, he even invited Morsi as his guest of honor to the 2012 Justice and Development Party conference in Ankara. With Morsi by his side, Erdogan delivered a programmatic speech characterized by manifestly Islamist undertones, and promised to grant Egypt a $2 billion aid package (compared with the US aid package of $1.5 billion and the pledged European Union amount of 500 million euros).