Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan gestures as he addresses his supporters next to his wife Ermin Erdogan following his victory in the second round of the presidential election at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Turkey. (Image: Reuters)
Global and regional powers will be closely watching where Turkey moves amid the Ukraine war and instability in Pakistan.
Western leaders congratulated Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his victory on Sunday, but were cautious about the path the Turkish president would choose for his country.
Turkey, which has been a bridge between Europe and Asia for centuries, took an anti-European stance and shifted from its secular roots towards conservatism as Erdogan forged alliances with conservative Muslim parties to stay in power.
Greetings President @RTErdogan If you are re-elected. I look forward to continuing my work together and preparing for #NATOSummit In July.- Jens Stoltenberg (@jensstoltenberg) May 28, 2023
NATO chiefs are concerned about Erdogan’s reluctance to lift the veto on Sweden’s membership, despite congratulations from European leaders such as French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. is likely to. ,
There are great challenges that France and Türkiye will overcome together. The return of peace to Europe, the future of our Eurasian alliance, the Mediterranean. With President Erdogan, whom I congratulate on his re-election, we will continue to move forward.- Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) May 28, 2023
The problems are even closer to home in Syria as Turkey controls the last rebel stronghold in northwestern Syria.
Congratulations to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his re-election. I look forward to further strengthening the long standing friendly bilateral relations between Australia and Turkey. 🇦🇺🇹🇷 – Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) May 29, 2023
It is widely considered the Syrian opposition’s biggest military and political ally, but Erdogan has become close to Russian President Vladimir Putin – who supports the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad – and Erdogan has also shown that he wants to mend his relationship. With neighbors including Saudi Arabia, Syria, Egypt and Armenia.
Germany and Turkey are close partners and allies – we are also closely linked socially and economically. Congratulations to President Erdogan on his re-election. Now we want to pursue our common issues with renewed vigour. – Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (@Bundeskanzler) May 28, 2023
Erdogan has a strong position in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. He emerged as a mediator and remained close to Putin despite being a founding member of NATO.
Congratulations to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his re-election. I look forward to continuing to work together as NATO partners on bilateral issues and shared global challenges.
– President Biden (@POTUS) May 28, 2023
Turkey did not impose sanctions on Russia, and the Biden administration does not want to punish Istanbul for fear of bringing Putin and Erdogan closer together.
I congratulate @RTErdogan On winning the election. I look forward to continuing to build EU-Turkish relations.
It is of strategic importance for both the EU and Turkey to work on taking this relationship forward, for the benefit of our peoples.
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) May 28, 2023
In mediating the grain deal and denouncing the war, Turkey has given Ukraine’s President Zelensky hope that he will not side with Moscow, not now.
President for his victory in the presidential election @RTErdogan Congratulations. We look forward to developing our cooperation for the security and stability of Europe, and to further strengthen our strategic partnership for the benefit of our countries. — Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) May 28, 2023
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also congratulated Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday and said he wanted India and Turkey to cooperate on global issues and strengthen bilateral ties.
Congratulations @RTErdogan On being re-elected as the President of Turkey! I am confident that our bilateral relations and cooperation on global issues will continue to grow in the times to come.- Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 29, 2023
Relations between Istanbul and New Delhi deteriorated after Islamabad sided with it on the Kashmir issue.
Gökhan Sinkara, a political analyst at Turkey’s Necmettin Erbakan University, told times of India Earlier this year, Erdogan “may open a new chapter in relations with India in his new term, mainly because of the ongoing political instability in Pakistan”.
Turkey’s longest-serving leader was put on a trial like never before in what was widely seen as the most consequential election in the country’s 100-year history as an Ottoman republic. Kemal Kilikdaroglu pushed Erdogan to Turkey’s first runoff on May 14 and narrowed the margin further in the second round, news agency AFP informed of.
(With inputs from Reuters and The Guardian)
