European leaders have become increasingly uncomfortable with what they see as authoritarian tactics of the Turkish government, particularly since last month’s bungled military coup, Bloomberg reports.
Focus groups convened in Turkey expressed alienation from the international community but affirmed the country’s unique path to democracy, according to a new report from the International Republican Institute’s Center for Insights in Survey Research.
“The intensification of anti-Western rhetoric we’ve seen following the failed military coup raises concerns about Turkey’s future status in the democratic community,” said Jan Surotchak, IRI Regional Director, Europe. “Going forward, it will be crucial for the international community to understand the origins of the distrust and alienation Turks feel from other nations, and to support them in their clearly-expressed desire to continue on the path of democracy.”
Current developments in Turkey are a harbinger of a worsening Middle East for U.S. foreign policy, analyst A.Kadir Yildirim writes for Carnegie’s Sada Journal:
Despite some critical voices within the European Union, who are calling for “a new kind of relationship,” and the increasingly unreliable character of Turkish cooperation with the West, Turkey’s sustained partnership with the United States and the West should be a priority. This is imperative for strategic reasons for both sides and for the improvement of the state of human rights and democratization in Turkey.
