Turkish president to speak with US, Russian counterparts: Presidential aide

By Mehmet Tosun

ANKARA (AA) - Türkiye’s president will speak with his US and Russian counterparts Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin following his weekend election win, Türkiye’s presidential spokesman said on Monday.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan is busy receiving congratulatory calls and he is expected to speak with several heads of states and leaders, including the US and Russian presidents, Ibrahim Kalin told Turkish news channel A Haber.

Erdogan will speak not only with Biden and Putin but also with the leaders of “Germany, France, Israel, Greece, Spain, the NATO secretary-general, the Netherlands, Ukraine ... All of these are scheduled for a phone call today,” Kalin added.

According to unofficial results on Sunday, incumbent President Erdogan won the race with 52.16% of the vote, while opposition candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu got 47.84%.

Asked about the future of Turkish-US relations, Kalin said that Ankara will continue its efforts to have good relations not only with the US but also with all countries of the world, with a perspective that protects Türkiye’s national interests.

Pointing to two main issues in Turkish-US ties, Kalin said: “The first is the support given to the PYD and YPG, which started during the era of (then-President Barack) Obama, and therefore to the PKK.”

Türkiye has long voiced opposition to US cooperation with the YPG, the Syrian branch of the PKK, a designated terror organization in the US, Türkiye, and the EU which has killed some tens of thousands of people. The PYD/YPG is the principal group behind the SDF, the US' chief partner in northeastern Syria, supposedly to fight terrorists.

“The second is the issue of FETO,” Kalin said, referring to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization, the group behind the 2016 defeated coup in Türkiye. “The American administration has not taken any steps regarding FETO terrorists until today.”

Since the defeated 2016 coup, Turkish officials have repeatedly pressed for the extradition of FETO terrorist ringleader Fetullah Gulen, who lives in the US state of Pennsylvania, but the US has not granted Türkiye’s requests.