Turkey under Erdogan: How a country turned away from democracy and the West –

By Carnegie Europe,

Erdogan’s sharp report on Turkey shows that his troubling transformation could be short-lived

Since coming to power in 2002, Recep Tayyip Erdogan has overseen Turkey’s radical transformation. The country, once a pillar of the Western alliance, has embarked on a militaristic foreign policy by intervening in regional hotspots from Nagorno-Karabakh to Libya. His democracy, backed by his desire to join the European Union, has given way to a one-man government.

Dimitar Bechev follows the political trajectory of Erdogan’s populist regime, from the reforms and prosperity of the 2000s to the effects of the war in neighboring Syria. In the tale of missed opportunities, Bechev explores how Turkey parted ways with the United States and Europe, how Putin embraced Russia and other revisionist forces, and how he replaced a weak democratic regime with an authoritarian one. However, he argues that Turkey’s democratic instincts are strong, that its economic ties with Europe are as strong as ever, and that Erdogan will not be able to achieve a fully autocratic regime.

Reviews for this publication

“Bechev, who is trying to seize the last 20 years of Turkey, is skillfully following the radical transformation of Turkey’s domestic and foreign policy under Recep Tayyip Erdogan. An outstanding book of one of the best. ‘
—Gonul Tol, Middle East Institute

“The fascinating story, rich in anecdotes, quotations and carefully selected empirical examples, evokes an in-depth historical analysis of Turkey’s evolution from the 1970s to the present day. Bechev points to Turkey’s modernization, the rise of Islamist populism, its geopolitical transition from the periphery of the West to the pursuit of regional hegemony, as well as the weaknesses of the competitive authoritarian regime created by President Erdogan.
-Rosa Balfour, director of Carnegie Europe

Bechev analyzes two decades in which President Erdogan witnessed the transformation from a “Muslim Democrat” who seemed friendly to the European Union to a strong man. He skillfully describes how changes in the AKP’s foreign policy are mixed with the growing authoritarian practices in Turkey.
—Professor Ayşe Kadıoğlu, Sabancı University