Türkiye will hold both presidential and parliamentarian elections on Sunday. It is generally being shared that Türkiye is at a crossroads. All internal and external observers consider the elections as the most important elections in the whole world. That is, it is not only vital for the Turkish people but also important for the region and even for the world. The results of the Turkish elections will have significant implications for both national and international politics. Today, I want to take some notes on the Western perceptions of the coming elections.

The United States has shown a close and dangerous interest in Taiwan in recent years in order to break the power of China, with which it is in global competition in almost every field, and to confine China to the Indo-Pacific region. If the two great powers with nuclear weapons try to solve this problem with war, of course, it will lead the whole world to disaster. However, according to the Realist school in the International Relations literature, it is thought that these powers will not directly attempt war, based on the prediction that if a nuclear power attacks another nuclear power, both sides will be destroyed. Based on this thesis, we can say that the probability of a direct U.S.-China war is unlikely.

The Western media doubling down on its anti-Erdoğan campaign in the home stretch is hardly surprising. In addition to The Economist, which went well beyond endorsing the opposition candidate in Türkiye’s presidential race, publications like Foreign Policy, Le Point, L’Express, Der Spiegel and The Washington Post have been notably involved in the Turkish elections.

With Türkiye entering the final week of the 2023 election campaign, rhetorical battles have notably escalated. It would be wrong to reduce that development to peak polarization because what observers have called this year’s most important election remains critically important for the country’s future.

The tension in the Indo-Pacific region is escalating day by day due to steps adopted by the United States concerning the Taiwan issue. Washington aims to wear out China, with which it is engaged in global competition, and to besiege it in the Pacific. In light of the latest developments, which pose a high risk in terms of global security and stability, the possibility that the crisis may turn into a war has sparked fear. This has left many to wonder how European countries will react if China decides to attack Taiwan.

Considering the devastating effects of new-generation weapons, global powers cannot launch direct wars against each other. Therefore, they prefer to engage in indirect battles, as the two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union, did during the Cold War. Their proxies fight each other; they control the tide of the war from behind closed doors by procuring military equipment and by providing economic and financial assistance to wage war.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, seen as one of Trump's most serious challengers, has been locked in a battle with Disney for over a year now. Disney, which has operated in Orlando with a special status since the 1960s, is like an autonomous republic. Its massive theme park contributes significantly to the state's economy by attracting tourists from all over the world. DeSantis is a conservative politician representing the right-wing of the Republican Party, and he has passed a law limiting the content of sex education in state schools in line with his views. When Disney criticized this law in public, it sparked DeSantis's fight against the corporation.

Türkiye has become one of five countries that build fifth-generation warplanes.