ROME – Whatever one makes of his aims or tactics, there’s no doubt Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is a formidable political operator.
Over 20 years in power, he’s pioneered a populist economic strategy known as Erdonomics, harnessed moderate Islam as a potent political force, and positioned Turkey as a regional and global power, all the while holding on to a strong base of domestic support.
On Saturday, the Turkish leader added another accomplishment to his résumé, arguably one no less impressive: getting Pope Francis to do something he obviously didn’t want to do – in this case, to speak out, at long last, on the controversy over the opening ceremony at the Paris Olympics eight days before.
