At last year’s Jerusalem Post Washington Conference, US envoy Tom Barrack outlined a vision for regional stability that included a possible role for Turkey in Gaza’s future.
Now, six months later, Barrack is set to take the stage once again, this time at the Jerusalem Post Annual Conference in New York. As tensions between Israel and Turkey continue to grow, questions remain about whether Barrack still believes Ankara does not pose a threat to Israel’s interests in the region.
Barrack currently serves as the US ambassador to the Republic of Türkiye, at a time when relations between Jerusalem and Ankara remain strained.
According to the Institute for National Security Studies, Turkey has taken several significant steps against Israel in recent months.
In April 2026, Turkish prosecutors reportedly filed indictments against 35 senior Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, seeking prison sentences related to the 2025 Gaza-bound flotilla incident and Israel’s military actions in Gaza.
A few months earlier, Turkey also tightened its trade restrictions on Israel by halting the issuance of EUR-MED preference certificates. Israeli importers had reportedly been using those certificates to route goods through European intermediaries in order to bypass existing trade limitations.
Barrack will be interviewed on stage by a Jerusalem Post reporter and is expected to face questions about Turkey’s policies, US strategy in the Middle East, and the future of Israel-Turkey relations.
For more information about the conference and remaining tickets, visit www.jpost.com/NY26.