After the Turkish presidential election ended with the victory of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the West and Russia, including the United States, are experiencing mixed feelings. This is because Turkey, although a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), maintains a pro-Russian line, such as not participating in sanctions against Russia along with Hungary, and is cracking the ‘Western solidarity’.
Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Erdogan on the 28th (local time), saying, “This victory is clear evidence of the people’s support for strengthening sovereignty and independent foreign policy.” President Putin also revealed his specialness, calling President Erdogan a ‘dear friend’. Since the invasion of Ukraine in February of last year, Russia has endured by strengthening economic cooperation with Turkey and others despite Western attempts to isolate it.
US President Joe Biden posted a short congratulatory message on Twitter that day, saying, “As allies of Turkey and NATO, we hope to work together on bilateral issues and common global challenges.” While delivering congratulations, he emphasized his responsibility as a member of NATO. European leaders such as Britain and France also sent messages of congratulations while emphasizing a joint response to Russia.
Analysts say that the geopolitical instability in Europe will continue with the re-election of President Erdogan. As President Erdogan said right before his runoff vote, “I will not be bound by Western (Russian) sanctions,” it is highly likely that Turkiye will continue to be a channel for Russia to evade sanctions. At the NATO summit to be held in Lithuania in July, it was unclear whether Sweden could formally join NATO.
The New York Times (NYT) reported, “President Erdogan believes that we have entered an era in which the order led by the West is no longer taken for granted. Because of his unpredictability, Western leaders must have hoped for his defeat.”
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.