Kerry, at Erdogan's service

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is going out of his way during his visit to Israel to shower us with security-related gifts and compliments, a contrast to sentiments he has expressed in the past. The American bear hug began with President Barack Obama's visit, which was entirely intended for two purposes: limiting Israel's maneuverability on a unilateral strike against Iran's nuclear facilities, and receiving Israeli assurances that it would not act in Congress to sabotage large American weapons deals, including with countries that Israel is officially in a state of war with, such as Saudi Arabia.

The person who is slightly hampering Hagel's efforts is none other than Secretary of State John Kerry. It's hard to understand how the head of America's foreign policy machine could see fit to compare those killed on the Mavi Marmara during the 2010 Gaza flotilla to the victims of the Boston terrorist attack. In doing so, of course, he created a parallel between Israeli soldiers acting within international law to Chechen terrorists.

So it's one of the two: Either Kerry doesn't have a modicum of judgment, a requirement for the top U.S. diplomat, or he understands things extremely well, and made his comment on purpose. Both options are bad, and to our regret we must assume that the U.S. president only fills positions with those who are wholly committed to expressing his policies.

The State of Israel must protest Kerry's miserable comment and demand that he, or Obama, make a public retraction. This isn't merely a matter of having our national honor trampled on by our best friend's secretary of state; it is primarily a matter of demanding that the U.S. administration completely refrain from any measure which could be interpreted as delegitimizing our very existence.

During their meeting in Turkey this week, Kerry asked Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to postpone his planned visit to the Gaza Strip, reasoning that such a step would hinder efforts to renew peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians. Translated to Hebrew, this means: Such a trip will enhance Hamas' legitimacy at the expense of the Palestinian Authority, which will consequently demand that Israel provide it with "achievements" of its own.

These achievements, of course, won't be provided, and any negotiation with the PA will also be delayed until some unknown date, to the chagrin of the Americans.

Kerry tried to placate Erdogan so that he would respond favorably to the request, thus his detrimental comment toward Israel. The secretary of state, however, apparently doesn't understand how leaders such as Erdogan interpret attempts at appeasement.

Kerry believed himself a member of some gentlemen's club, while his host was happy to notch another victory by forcing the American administration to bend (the first was when Obama squeezed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to apologize to Erdogan).

Unlike the Americans, we can't make the same mistakes with Turkey because we don't have the same room to maneuver. The Turks are currently conducting themselves, even after the prime minister's apology, as a party interested in weakening Israel and strengthening its enemies. This must be taken seriously, not swept under the rug.