A decade ago, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called Egypt’s strongman “a brutal killer” and vowed never to shake hands with him for overthrowing and jailing Mohammed Morsi just a year after the Muslim Brotherhood leader, who died in custody, became the country’s first democratically elected president in 2012.
This week, Erdogan was allegedly preparing to host President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who has, in turn, accused him of “supporting terrorists,” among other misdeeds. According to unconfirmed reports in Turkish media, Sisi might even arrive in the Turkish capital as soon as Thursday, days after the countries exchanged ambassadors for the first time since Morsi’s ouster.
The U-turn is the latest in a series of similar moves that have seen Erdogan reach out to former foes including Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the United Arab Emirates’ President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and his ultimate nemesis, Syria's Bashar al-Assad.
Turkey’s weakening economy and diplomatic isolation are commonly cited as the main drivers for the change. But how to explain the ease with which he has altered course, facing little if any popular pushback?
