Out Of Order

We are back! After an extended spring break, the Out of Order crew is back in the studio to bring you informative and relevant speakers and ideas, exploring how the world was, is and will be ordered. In this episode, we discuss whether the West is a club built on common values or shared interests. Specifically, we look at the case of NATO and Turkey and consider both how democratic backsliding affects and should affect their relationship. NATO’s founding treaty refers includes a statement of common values in its preamble, mentioning the “freedom, common heritage, and civilization of their peoples” and that it is “founded on the principles of democracy, individual liberty, and rule of law.” But how important have these common principles really been for NATO? Is it really a democratic, liberal organization, or is it simply a security alliance against the (then) Soviet Union and today Russia? We discuss the current political situation in Turkey, the prospects for reform and NATO’s proper role in pushing against