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Great read David. When I led Europe for AP in the 2010s Turkey was a big story, and there was still hope for EU accession. I've followed it closely ever since. Rare is the dispatch on it as incisive and readable as this.

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David and Pamuk are absolutely right. Erdogan's easy win is a catastrophe for Turkey and Turks, for the West, for resolving the Ukrainian war, for reining in Putin, and for much more. Autocracy has triumphed, sadly. Kemal Ataturk, the creator of post-Ottoman Turkey, must be rolling uncomfortably in his grave.

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May 28, 2023Liked by David A. Andelman

Nice summary of this fateful moment. Even strongmen cannot defy economic gravity, however, so the work is still in progress.

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Most appreciated, Professor ! My time with Turkey goes back to my first visit as a NYTimes correspondent 35 years ago! Not long after, my interpreter was exiled by the Generals to Cyprus. Sadly some aspects of Turkish democracy (which can be most robust & invigorating) never change !!

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You said a mouthful, Tim…sadly he now has 5 years to progress down this ill-fated path !!

;-((

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