Everyone is curious about Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. This is what I felt in my recent visit to European cities, where I was frequently asked for my analysis. What I noted inside and outside Turkey was a mix of curiosity and concern.
What does Erdogan want to do? As a popular leader of a stable party that 11 years ago brought a new political class to parliament and broke the grip of military tutelage, significantly weakened anti-democratic mind-sets and kept the vision of reform alive all this time, is he transitioning from national renewal to dictatorial rule and pomposity? Or is he, engulfed by fear, heading toward an obscure future?