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Jul 6, 2026
Özgür Özel
At NATO's upcoming summit in Ankara, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will seek to portray his country as stable, confident, and essential to Western security. But only the last one is true, which is why the restoration of democracy in Turkey is more than a domestic concern.
ANKARA—When NATO leaders arrive in Ankara for their annual summit on July 7–8, they will be meeting in a country whose strategic importance is unquestioned, but whose democratic foundations are fracturing. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has governed Turkey for more than two decades—longer than any elected leader in the history of the Turkish Republic.
