For Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan this has been a tough year, one in which he saw his own popularity ebb at home and his country's image slip abroad. Izmir lost its bid to organise Expo 2020 on 27 November, when a selection panel voted for Dubai instead. The Justice and Development Party (JDP) had its heart set on winning the honour of organising this prestigious event, which is held every five years. Earlier, Turkey also lost a bid to host the 2020 Olympics, which went to Tokyo instead. In late November, Erdogan had a moment of fleeting satisfaction when he ranked higher than Egypt's General Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi on the Time list for “Man of the Year.” But he couldn't claim the top spot. The main event of the year was the Gezi Park protests, which did extensive damage to Erdogan's image as a democratic leader. In September, protests broke out in Istanbul and Ankara, with demonstrators calling for the prime minister's resignation. In Hatay, in southeast Turkey, protesters clashed with police after a young man died from injuries sustained during demonstrations held in September. For a while, it seemed that Hatay was about to descend into sectarian strife, as most of its inhabitants believe in the Nusayri version of the Alawite doctrine, which is prevalent in Syria but not in Turkey. Western diplomats believe that internal disputes are growing in the ranks of the ruling JDP between the supporters of Erdogan and the supporters of President Abdallah Gul. The newspaper Yenicag, in a recent editorial, highlighted an upcoming visit to Washington by Turkish opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the Republican People's Party. The newspaper notes that the visit may be a sign that Washington is losing confidence in Erdogan and exploring ties with his potential successor. During his visit to the US, Kilicdaroglu will open an office for his party in Washington and meet top US officials and members of the Turkish community in America. According to Yenicag, Erdogan's government, which once had high hopes of leading the region, has lost much of its stature in Europe, to the point where it wasn't even invited to attend the recent talks with Iran in Geneva. It is not yet clear if Turkey will be invited to the Geneva II conference on Syria. When Egypt expelled the Turkish ambassador from Cairo, this was a further proof that Erdogan's diplomacy was failing. Ankara is now at a watershed, trying to explore diplomatic venues that are less disruptive than those Erdogan had followed. Turkish diplomats are exploring ways of reconciling, rather than confronting, other countries in the region. But it is far from clear whether Erdogan can handle this transition with grace. While asserting that he doesn't want to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries, the Turkish prime minister asserts a desire to defend those who were “wronged” in other countries. The irony of such remarks is not missed on those who remember the thousands of Turks who were “wronged” by his government. The Republican People's Party maintains that Erdogan is turning into an advocate for the Muslim Brotherhood and a staunch defender of Egypt's ousted president, Mohamed Morsi, which is not in Ankara's interests. Ballot boxes matter in any democracy, but they are not the entire story, Turkish opposition leaders say. They argue that Erdogan's regional policies have backfired all the way from Damascus to Cairo and beyond. Ankara is no longer on good terms with Tunisia and Saudi Arabia. In Palestine, Erdogan's posters, once plastered on walls, have been torn down. To make things worse, the economy — once the showpiece of Turkey's rising fortunes — is failing. In a recent report, the IMF voiced great concern over the way the Turkish economy was heading.
