WORLD LEADERS CONGRATULATE TURKISH PM OVER POLL RESULTS
Ankara, 21 Muharram 1437/4 November 2015 (MINA) – Monday in Ankara has seen an inflow of congratulatory official statements and phone calls offered to Turkey’s Justice and Development (AK) Party Chairman and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu for his party’s electoral triumph.
According to a written statement released from the Turkish Prime Ministry Press Office, German Chancellor Angela Merkel phoned Davutoglu late on Monday to congratulate him on his success, Anadolu Agency quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting
“Our Prime Minister stressed that the elections were held in a peaceful environment with a voter turnout of over 85 percent, which shows the maturity of Turkish democracy. Turkish people made their choice in favor of political, democratic and economic stability,” said the statement.
During the phone conversation, both leaders also exchanged views on the recent developments in Syria, the fight against Daesh and the refugee crisis.
“They affirmed their resolve to reinforce the cooperation in these issues both on bilateral level and on multilateral platforms including the EU,” it added.
In Washington, White House spokesman Josh Earnest congratulated the Turkish people on the elections, saying that the U.S. looked forward to working with the new government.
He also said the White House voiced its concerns — “publicly and privately” — over the freedom of press and speech in Turkey.
According to Turkish Prime Ministry sources — who were not named according to protocol — Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus President Mustafa Akinci called Davutoglu in the afternoon to congratulate him on Sunday’s poll results, which effectively gave the party a 317-seat majority in the country’s parliament as it received 49.4 percent of the votes.
In a message sent to Davutoglu, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev hailed the election results as a “bright manifestation of the Turkish community’s national will and its support for stability, tranquility and development”.
Aliyev stressed that his country shared the AK Party’s joy in victory and wished success to all party members.
“From now on, our strategic partnership, which has passed the test of time, and exclusive relations will further broaden and consolidate,” he added.
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif separately telephoned Davutoglu to congratulate him on his party’s landslide election victory, according to press office of the Turkish premier.
Afghan First Vice President General Abdul Rashid Dostum said in a message addressed to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Turkish premier that he was “honored to gladly congratulate the success of the AK party and accordingly that of the great Turkish nation in the general election I closely followed.”
Dostum also endorsed the Turkish government’s decisions — taken as part of its anti-terror efforts following the deadly terrorist attacks that hit the country before the election — noting their significance for the security of the wider region.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov also sent his congratulations, saying he expressed his “sincere belief that the democratic will of the Turkish people, reflected by their votes, will enable a collaboration for the Turkish state’s development in all areas and accelerate the progress of bilateral relations”.
The Iraqi Turkmen Front’s Turkey Representative Hicran Kazanci also sent a written message to Davutoglu, saying the Turkish nation once again voted for AK Party as they chose stability, welfare and security, all of which he described as fruits of AK Party’s 13 year-long rule.
According to preliminary results, the AK Party secured 49.48 percent of the vote — much more than had been predicted by pollsters — giving it a wide majority (317 out of 550 seats) in parliament.
Sunday’s snap vote was called following an inconclusive general election in June, which saw no party win an outright majority. Almost five months of subsequent talks between parties failed to produce a coalition. (T/P010)
Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)
http://www.aa.com.tr/en/politics/world-leaders-congratulate-turkish-pm-over-poll-results/463627
