Turkish-Lebanese relations are the diplomatic relations between the Republic of Turkey and the Republic of Lebanon. Lebanon has an embassy in Ankara and a consulate general in Istanbul. Turkey has an embassy in Beirut. Although matters between Ankara and Beirut have never been tense, relations between Turkey and Lebanon have mostly been coldly dormant owing to the former's quietness towards the Second Intifada because of its closeness to Israel. However, relations between the two countries have the hope of thickening because of Recep Tayyip Erdogan's actions during the Offensive in Gaza. Also, the two nations are connected through history because Lebanon gained independence from Ottoman Syria.
Historical relations
The Ottoman Empire, which controlled Lebanon as part of Syrian Vilayat, had Lebanon as the most diverse region in the Ottoman Empire. There were several ethnic and religious tensions, notably the infamous 1840 Lebanon conflict and 1860 Mount Lebanon civil war which devastated Lebanon and the Ottoman further imposed strict rule in Lebanon. During the World War I, the Ottomans imposed a forcible blockade to prevent supplies from being taken by the French and the British. However, this resulted in the Great Famine of Mount Lebanon, which claimed the lives of a half of Lebanese population at the time. This formed the basic disdain and hostility against Turkey among Lebanese population.
The Turkish Government under Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has perceived Hezbollah, a Shi’a paramilitary and political group backed by Iran with a negative perception, based on historical trauma in Lebanon and the threat to Turkish legacies in Lebanon. Thus Turkey has sought to maintain closer tie with Lebanon, to dismantle Iranian influence inside Lebanon. The influx of Hezbollah fighters coming to Syria fighting against the Syrian National Army is also the reason why Turkey tries to establish stronger ties with Lebanon in order to weaken Iran's role in Lebanon.
Turkish influence
While Lebanon has been relatively out of the knowledge of the Turkish population, the recent political brawl had led to some several fallouts of relationship. In September 2019, Lebanese PresidentMichel Aoun tweeted his criticism on the Ottoman rule and expressed concerns about the return of Turkey to Lebanon, and summoned the Turkish ambassador as well. This had drawn criticism in Turkey as a denial campaign against the Ottoman heritages.
