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ErdoganThe 69-year-old will rule for another five years after defeating opposition candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu. It was the closest election he had to contest in two decades.
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He President According to official figures from Turkey’s Supreme Electoral Council, he received 52.18% of the vote, against 47.82% for Kıldırığı.
Turkey election results. (AP)
After knowing the results, Erdogan He thanked the nation for handing over the presidency to him again. Tens of thousands of people gathered outside Ankara’s presidential palace to hear him speak.
There is no problem we cannot solve, he said. Erdogan.
Türkiye faces skyrocketing inflation, which has driven up the cost of living. In addition, it has the challenge of rebuilding entire cities after the devastating earthquake that killed more than 50,000 people in early February this year.
“The only winner today is Turkey,” he said. Erdogan. In his victory speech, he vowed to work hard for Turkey’s second century, which he called the “Turkish Century”. Andhra Agency noted that the country is celebrating its centenary this year.
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Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been re-elected as the President of Turkey. (AP)
Erdogan’s leadership on the international stage
But how did he succeed? Erdogan Despite the economic crisis and people’s hardships after the disaster Earthquake?
Analysts’ explanations go through two pillars of his management: Erdogan He retained the support of conservative voters loyal to him for promoting Islamism. Turkey itself, which was founded on secular principles; and to increase the country’s influence in international politics. The paper Turkey itself This is relevant in global crises that reach beyond its borders, such as refugees from conflicts such as Syria and, to a greater extent, War between Russia and Ukraine.
Let’s go with the second feature.
Political scientist Rashid Gaya told EFE news agency that the role of Erdogan On the international stage that explains much of his success on Sunday.
“The lower classes, who mainly suffer from economic problems, are buying into his image as a world leader. They believe Erdogan brought Turkey to where it is now as one of the world’s great powers.Achieving peace between Russia and Ukraine, not bowing to the US and the West, and building a larger military force with advances in the defense sector”Rashid Gaya said.
“It doesn’t matter whether it’s true or not, The pro-government media made us believe this“He refers to the government’s control of information in a country where freedom of the press and the number of independent and critical media outlets are few and far between.
A testament to international leadership Erdogan Congratulation from the leaders of the first results to him France, Emmanuel Macron; of America, Joe Biden; He British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak; up to representatives RussiaVladimir Putin: And from UkraineVolodymyr Zelensky.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (left) meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the Conference on Communication and Confidence-Building Activities in Asia (CICA) on 13 October 2022.
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“There are huge challenges that France and Turkey face together. The return of peace to Europe, the future of our Euro-Atlantic alliance, the Mediterranean. I wish President Erdogan his re-election and we will continue to move forward.”said Macron.
when Putin described the “victory” of Erdogan “As a natural consequence of the selfless work of the leadership of the Republic of Turkey, Clear evidence of the Turkish people’s support for Erdogan’s efforts to “strengthen state sovereignty and pursue an independent foreign policy.”
For his part, Zelensky He said he hoped to strengthen relations with Turkey itself. “We look forward to further strengthening our strategic partnership for the benefit of our countries and strengthening cooperation for the security and stability of Europe.”
In the context of the war in Ukraine, Erdogan’s closeness to Putin has irritated Europe, NATO and the United States.
It is true Turkey itself Be a member state from I take it Not chased away Erdogan of Putin. More to the point, I have played the judge in the war between Russia and Ukraine.
For example, he Turkish President It helped broker a deal that would open a safe corridor for Ukraine’s grain exports across the Black Sea. When Russia decided to end that agreement, Erdogan achieved it Putin Back off
He has set conditions for it Sweden and Finland Join NATO. Finally, it approved the accession of a second country, and in the second case it maintained its veto.
A week ago, CNN Interviewed Erdogan And asked if he really believed it America It is trying to topple him as he said on May 13. The Turkish president declined to comment, but criticized President Joe Biden for what he sees as a “dictator.”
“How can someone who goes to the second round of elections without completing the first round be a dictator? It is a reality. We have an alliance with 322 MPs in Parliament and the leader of this alliance is going to go to the second round in the primary, what dictator is that?he asked.
CNN also asked him if he would work with the Biden administration. “Absolutely. I will work with Mr. Biden. And if Biden leaves, I will work with whoever replaces him,” he replied.
Erdogan He talked about the military and financial assistance provided by the West Ukraine.
said “The West has not led a more balanced approach. A country like Russia needs a balanced approach, which would have been a more successful approach. For example, in the Black Sea Grain Corridor initiative we are not only considering the interests and needs of Western countries, but also the interests of African countries. The grain route initiative has been extended for another two months from May 18. How do you think this is possible? Thanks to our special relationship with President Putin.
Interview
“Erdogan is with no one in international politics, he is with everyone at the same time”
Enrique Banus, Director of the Institute of European Studies at the University of Buera
-Were you surprised by Erdoğan’s victory and consider it his most difficult election?
This was not surprising. After the first round, you could already see it coming. But worrying. After 20 years in power and having to go to the second round for the first time, he could not be defeated.
-How do you explain that Erdoğan governs a NATO member state, while being an ally of Putin in the context of this war, and even has the ability to veto Sweden’s entry into the Atlantic Alliance?
We have five more years ahead of us. He is very stubborn in his positions and he likes to show his power. His power is precisely at the same level as everyone else at the same time. That is, with everyone in one way and no one in a definitive way. And he wants to show a lot of muscle and he wants to show that he is the heir of an empire, so he can make other empires like EU, USA or Russia tremble, because he is absolutely not. In favor of that country. He plays the old logic of empires, which is very Turkish. That’s why it also has more votes. Plus, he controls the press, he’s a populist, but that national pride is more important.
-At some point the Western powers might pressure you to take a stand and not be with everyone and anyone at the same time?
They tried to pressure him, but to no avail. They tried it with the issue of Sweden’s entry into NATO. But it doesn’t make much sense to accept this character to continue to negotiate and flex its muscle from time to time to show Turkey as a superpower. This gets you internal votes. Such an approach also gives Putin votes. It’s the same strategy, it’s just that it didn’t lead to huge results in the case of Turkey.
-then NATO would have welcomed Erdogan’s defeat as a way to free him and bring Turkey closer to the Allies.
Yes definitely. But he also did a series of dirty tricks. He controls the press and an important part of the judiciary, which blocked the candidacy of his strongest opponent, Istanbul mayor. And in this election he faced a gray figure with 48%. In other words, the win was tight.
Are we looking forward to another 5 years of Erdogan with the same leading profile on the international stage?
Yes. The only issue that can end your passion is economics. Turkey’s economy is terrible, they have 44% inflation. Another problem is that the central bank is not completely independent, so according to experts they have made wrong monetary policy, they did it for political reasons. Erdoğan has had 20 years of economic growth and the situation of many has improved, but if it continues to deteriorate, it will make a difference, because 5 years is a long time. And if he continues to intervene in the economy with populist measures, we will have to see what the consequences are, because people might get fed up.
