Biden and Putin Congratulate Erdogan on Winning Presidential Election in Turkey | CNN Indonesia

CNN Indonesia

Monday, May 29 2023 07:05 WIB

Jakarta, CNNIndonesia —

A number of heads of state unanimously congratulated the President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who managed to secure his third term as President Turki after winning the second round of elections on Sunday (28/5).

United States President Joe Biden said as a fellow country of the North Atlantic Alliance of Nations (NATO), the White House wanted to continue bilateral cooperation with Turkey.

The US also considers Türkiye a NATO ally and valued partner.

“As a NATO ally, I look forward to continuing bilateral cooperation and sharing global challenges,” Biden said in a tweet he was quoted as saying AFP.

Apart from Biden, Russian President Vladimir Putin also did not want to miss congratulating Erdogan.

“Your (Erdogan’s) victory in the elections this time is the logical result of your hard work as the leader of the Turkish Republic,” Putin said in a statement released on the Kremlin’s website.

In the statement, Putin even called Erdogan a “friend”. He considered Erdogan’s victory “a clear proof of the support of the Turkish people” for the president’s efforts to strengthen the country’s sovereignty and “an independent foreign policy.”

Despite having different views on the conflict in the Middle East, the relationship between Putin and Erdogan has grown stronger in recent years, including in responding to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Türkiye even emphasized that it does not want to impose sanctions on Russia like most of its Western allies.

Ankara has also bridged dialogue between Kyiv and Moscow several times to reduce tensions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Apart from Biden and Putin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and French President Emmanuel Macron also made similar remarks.

“Congratulations to President Erdogan, I look forward to continuing the strong collaboration between our countries from growing trade to dealing with security threats as NATO allies,” Sunak said via Twitter.

Leaders from NATO to the European Union also sent their congratulations to Erdogan.

Erdogan won the second round of the Turkish general election which was held on Sunday (28/5).

The voting results showed that the incumbent succeeded in gaining 52.14 percent of the vote. Meanwhile, in this election, Erdogan’s arch-rival, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, pocketed 47.86 percent of the vote.

This victory signifies that Erdogan’s reign will continue until 2028. The election in 2023 itself is the third time that Erdogan has won in 20 years of ruling Turkey.

“We will rule the country for the next five years,” Erdogan said in his victory declaration on Sunday evening local time.

“With God’s permission, we will be worthy of your trust,” he continued.

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