How big is your entourage? And what does it say about you?
We’re living through an era of big-stage diplomacy. Every week, it seems, world leaders gather at forums and emergency summits to mitigate another major crisis. And amid these global get-togethers, the size of one’s entourage – from bag-carriers to bodyguards – has become more than a matter of appearances. For some countries, it is a highly public way to display power and prestige; the bigger the entourage, the better it reflects on the finances and domestic clout of a leader and their nation.
This is particularly true in the gilded Middle East, where even minor royals travel everywhere with a retinue of acolytes and sycophants. In the US, too, with its culture of political showmanship, presidents always bring “The Beast”, a limo kitted out with armour and Bond-esque gadgets (although, given the number of assassination attempts made against US leaders, there are practical reasons for this). It’s no coincidence that Kim Jong-Un, the North Korean leader with a love for the grandiose, has copied the look. For other leaders, particularly in tax-heavy northern Europe, a humbler style of travel is better suited, though there is the danger that their smaller entourages will be seen as a sign of weakness by their better-padded counterparts.
Here in Turkey, we get regular insights into the mindset of leaders at the many diplomatic events that the country hosts. Last month, on a single day, it provided the neutral ground for a gathering of Nato foreign ministers and a planned head-to-head between presidents Putin and Zelensky. The low-key tone of Zelensky’s arrival matched his sartorial style: he descended the aeroplane steps alone. Vladimir Putin pulled what is arguably the bigger power move by keeping everyone guessing until the last minute – before not showing up at all.
President Erdoğan’s entourage is a key part of his image: one of the main duties of his huge squad of special advisers is to be on the tarmac to greet him every time he arrives back in the country. This massive security detail, often with dozens of vehicles, runs reasonably smoothly through the neatly planned roads of Ankara but gets jammed in Istanbul’s snarled traffic. When I saw him arrive in Sarajevo in 2018, his motorcade seemed to dwarf the city: locals stared in amazement as it passed through the streets. Erdoğan’s insistence on bringing his own security to Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral, and the UK’s insistence that he could not, meant that he missed the event. But while Turkey celebrates strongman culture, it is also in the doldrums of an economic crisis and Turks are increasingly furious at the amount that the country spends on Erdoğan’s entourage – reportedly millions of lira per day. Other extravagant leaders take note: your entourage only looks as good as your economy.
Lucinda Smith is Monocle’s Istanbul correspondent. For more opinion, analysis and insight, subscribe to Monocle today.
