In the absence of Cold War clarity, just how much of a friend is Turkey?
There is much to digest in the recent presidential election in Turkey. 2023 is the centennial of the founding of the secular republic. This was a critical and symbolic election on many levels.
After more than two decades of rule, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan declared his reelection, with 52% of the vote, on May 28 a victory for his country. Some 48% of the electorate feel that the legacy of the founder, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, was betrayed by the outcome — not of a rigged election, but a severely unlevel playing field.