Western media covers Erdogan’s election victory, stresses Türkiye’s significance

By Ahmet Gencturk and Nur Asena Erturk

ANKARA/ATHENS (AA) – The Western media has covered Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s victory in Sunday's runoff election, and stressed the global and regional significance of Türkiye.

Extensively covering the runoff of the Turkish presidential election, the British public broadcaster BBC stressed that Erdogan’s victory matters for the West given Türkiye's global strategic significance which increased even further against the backdrop of the ongoing war in Ukraine.

“The West used to describe Turkey's strategic importance as the bridge between Europe and the Middle East - but Russia's invasion of Ukraine has transformed Turkey's status,” it said, noting that world leaders rushed to congratulate Erdogan's election victory.

Skynews, a major private broadcaster in the UK, similarly underlined that “Türkiye holds a unique position in world politics -- both as the junction between Europe and Asia and as the gatekeeper to the Black Sea.”

In a separate analysis, the broadcaster also said: “Erdogan has once again proved critics wrong and out-maneuvered his toughest challengers.”

The major British daily Guardian said Erdogan appealed for national unity in the victory speech he delivered to hundreds of thousands of Turkish citizens who gathered outside the presidential complex in the capital Ankara.

Germany’s public television ARD highlighted that Erdogan received messages of congratulations from all over the world on Sunday night on his election victory.

US President Joe Biden, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy were among the leaders who congratulated Erdogan for winning the historic presidential runoff, ARD reported.

“Erdogan democratically won the elections in Türkiye,” reporter Uwe Lueb said in a commentary published on ARD’s website, adding that there have been no allegations of electoral fraud.

“Now he has mammoth political tasks ahead,” he stressed, referring to the economy, recovery efforts in the earthquake region, and the ongoing domestic debate about the Syrian refugee issue.

The weekly Der Spiegel reported that Turkish citizens living in Germany overwhelmingly voted for Erdogan in the presidential runoff.

In France, the daily Le Figaro wrote on its website on Monday: "Erdogan master of Türkiye for five more years," and covered Erdogan supporters' celebrations in the country, while the daily Le Monde said the president won a third term.

The weekly Le Point on its website said Erdogan's victory was "no surprise," and the daily Liberation on its headline said: "Türkiye: Erdogan forever," noting that the president's supporters celebrated across the country on Sunday.

In Italy, the public broadcaster RAI stressed that numerous world leaders, including those of the major Western countries, congratulated Erdogan on his reelection to the office.

The daily La Repubblica, citing Turkish citizens it interviewed, said Turkish people are convinced that Erdogan “will fix the things.”

Belgium media outlets also covered Erdogan's victory. "Elections in Türkiye: Erdogan, eternal winner" was the daily Le Soir's website headline on Monday, while La Libre announced Erdogan's victory, as well.

Swiss newspapers similarly covered Erdogan's victory on Monday. World leaders congratulated Erdogan, the daily Le Matin said, marking Erdogan's invincibility.

Very extensively covering the Turkish elections, the Greek public broadcaster noted that Erdogan’s victory did not come as a surprise to Athens.

Speaking to ERT, Alexandros Diakopoulos, the former national security adviser, said that “the (Turkish) people want a strong leader and Erdogan projects this model."

The daily Kathimerini stressed Erdogan’s promise of “the century of Türkiye.”

Another major daily, Ta Nea, said: “He (Erdogan) won this election by literally standing alone against everyone.”

A columnist in the daily To Vima praised Erdogan’s “pragmatic and accommodating foreign policy,” saying: “Türkiye needs the West and the West needs Türkiye.”

Bulgaria’s state-run news agency BTA shared the Turkish election results without much commenting on them.

Albania’s English-language Albanian Daily News highlighted the messages by world leaders and Türkiye’s strategic importance in the regional and global affairs.

According to unofficial results, the Turkish president won the race with 52.16%, while Kilicdaroglu got 47.84% of the vote, with around 85% voter turnout.