What is driving Ankara’s love for Nicolas Maduro?

Coup attempts in any country — democratic or not — continue to act as emotional tripwires for Erdogan and his supporters, especially if these attempts are supported by the West.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro attend an agreement-signing ceremony between Turkey and Venezuela at Miraflores Palace in Caracas, Venezuela December 3, 2018. REUTERS/Manaure Quintero - RC1A1B7C8000
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro attend an agreement-signing ceremony between Turkey and Venezuela at Miraflores Palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Dec. 3, 2018. - REUTERS/Manaure Quintero
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Semih Idiz

Developments in Venezuela are reverberating in Turkey, especially after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threw his weight behind the country’s embattled President Nicolas Maduro.

Erdogan feels honor bound to do so, of course. Maduro was among the first international leaders to contact him even though the two hadn’t met before and offer support against the failed coup attempt in Turkey in July 2016.

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