Turkey: An Unreliable Ally?

By Aykan Erdemir

Dr. Aykan Erdemir is a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, and a former member of the Turkish Parliament (2011-2015). He is a founding member of the International Panel of Parliamentarians for Freedom of Religion or Belief, and a recipient of the 2016 Stefanus Prize for Religious Freedom.  Erdemir holds a PhD in Anthropology and Middle Eastern Studies from Harvard University, and is co-author of the 2016 book Antagonistic Tolerance: Competitive Sharing of Religious Sites and Spaces (Routledge).

As Turkey continues to face a deteriorating security environment, The Cipher Brief sat down with Aykan Erdemir, a former member of the Turkish parliament and a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, to discuss Turkey’s political direction. According to Erdemir, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has taken Turkey down a path toward authoritarianism, and Erdogan’s flip-flopping policies have earned Turkey a reputation as an “unreliable ally.”

The Cipher Brief: With Turkey facing an increasingly tense security situation and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gaining strength, where do you see Turkey headed in the short-term?

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