Like Japan, Turkey sees itself as a bridge between two worlds — in this case, between Europe and the Middle East. Not only does geography enable Turkish leadership, but its successful combination of Islam and democracy is seen as model for the Middle East as well.
But the civil war in Syria has ruptured relations between Ankara and Damascus. Worse, however, is the prospect that the unrest in Syria will actually spill over the border into Turkey and risks destabilizing that country as well.
In Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, those ambitions have taken more concrete form. The fact that he heads an Islamist party that has challenged the traditional military-led order gives him additional credibility among fellow Muslims.