ANKARA: Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan took the oath of office for the third term on Saturday after winning the re-election last weekend, extending his rule into a third decade.
“I, as President, swear upon my honour and integrity before the great Turkish nation and history to safeguard the existence and independence of the state,” Erdogan said during a ceremony at the Parliament in Ankara, which was broadcast live.
Erdogan received his mandate from the interim Parliament Speaker before taking the oath. Turkiye’s longest-serving leader, Erdogan won 52.2% support in a May 28 runoff vote. His election victory defied most opinion polls and came despite a cost-of-living crisis that was seen to have hurt his prospects.
His new five-year mandate allows Erdogan to pursue the increasingly authoritarian policies that have polarised the country, a NATO member, but strengthened its position as a regional military power. After taking the oath in Parliament, a ceremony will be held at the Presidential Palace attended by high-level officials from 78 countries and international organisations, including NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, according to the state-run Anadolu Agency.
Erdogan will name his cabinet later on Saturday, and is expected to signal a change in his unorthodox approach to economic policy. Erdogan was likely to include former economy chief Mehmet Simsek, Reuters reported earlier this week, which would indicate a potential return to greater economic orthodoxy, including eventual interest rate hikes.
Simsek was highly regarded by investors when he served as Finance Minister and Deputy PM between 2009 and 2018.