Erdogan's Next Move: What Washington and NATO Are Really Facing

Turkey was once hailed as a rare democratic model in the Middle East, balancing secular governance with a multiparty system and strong ties to the West. International observers fear that has all crumbled.

The country’s political landscape is at a breaking point after the dramatic arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu last week, the leading opposition figure poised to challenge President Erdogan. Charged with corruption and terrorism, Mr. Imamoglu’s detention—alongside the mass arrest of his aides and the annulment of his academic degree—effectively eliminates Mr. Erdogan’s most formidable rival ahead of the next election.

How will Washington and NATO respond? If at all?