Western Leaders’ Discomfort With Turkey—and Vice Versa

Western Leaders’ Discomfort With Turkey—and Vice Versa
Posted by: Marc Pierini

Friday, April 8, 2016 | http://carnegieeurope.eu/strategiceurope/?fa=63277&mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTWpRMU5UUXlZMkpsWlRobSIsInQiOiJ3aFlNOFZ0XC83TEpFT3VOTjBKS1ZSMldwXC9GM0hmazUxYWlwWnpMUEI3NlR3OFwvaFIyNkRobEpaNUJQTWpYeDM0TTBcLzdxeWVGcDd5RXN6V3U4N01Ba3FRUFM0ZWFXWmJock15Q0RPOEhzZ2M9In0%3D
The West used to see Turkey as a reliable ally. From the height of the Cold War to the heyday of the country’s EU accession negotiations in the late 2000s, the Turkish republic was seen as a strategic partner.
But since the first direct presidential election in August 2014 and the two legislative elections in June and November 2015, when the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) successively lost and regained its parliamentary majority, Western perceptions of Turkey have darkened. Internally Turkey is in crisis, and externally it is at odds with almost every country of importance. This is a discomforting situation for Western leaders. Yet such will be the reality on both sides for the foreseeable future.
Long gone are the days when, after the AKP’s accession to power in 2002, Turkey was seen as the model Muslim country on its way to democracy. For about five years starting in 2005, the Turkish government efficiently absorbed parts of the EU’s acquis communautaire, the set of norms and standards that would ultimately align the country’s political and economic governance with the EU’s. This is no more the trend. http://carnegieeurope.eu/strategiceurope/?fa=63277&mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTWpRMU5UUXlZMkpsWlRobSIsInQiOiJ3aFlNOFZ0XC83TEpFT3VOTjBKS1ZSMldwXC9GM0hmazUxYWlwWnpMUEI3NlR3OFwvaFIyNkRobEpaNUJQTWpYeDM0TTBcLzdxeWVGcDd5RXN6V3U4N01Ba3FRUFM0ZWFXWmJock15Q0RPOEhzZ2M9In0%3D