On Oct. 4, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was about to start his long-awaited visit to Brussels. He had scheduled appointments with the highest officials of the European Union, including President of the European Council Donald Tusk, President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker and President of the European Parliament Martin Schulz, and pro-government Turks were hoping that Erdogan would regain the favor of the West.
These hopes contrasted with the feelings of the pro-democracy and to a large measure pro-EU circles that have become wary of Erdogan’s increasingly authoritarian tendencies. Many of them have a sense that the Europeans have betrayed them.
