PanamaTimes

Friday, Jul 26, 2024

Turkey election: Kremlin rejects accusations of interference

Turkey election: Kremlin rejects accusations of interference

The Kremlin has denied interfering in Turkey's elections after the opposition candidate, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, accused Russia of "meddling".

Kemal Kilicdaroglu is seen as having a serious chance to unseat longstanding President Erdogan in Sunday's election

Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russians did not interfere in internal affairs of other states.


He added: "If someone has presented Mr Kilicdaroglu with such information, then they are liars."

Mr Kilicdaroglu is seriously challenging strongman President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in power for 20 years.

The opposition leader has not provided details about his claims.

However, in a Twitter post which was also shared in Russian on Thursday, Mr Kilicdaroglu said that Russians were behind "montages, plots, deep fake content and tapes released in this country".

Mr Kilicdaroglu also said that if Russia wanted Turkey's "friendship" after this weekend's election it should "get [its] hands off the Turkish state. We are still in favour of cooperation and friendship."

Mr Peskov insisted that Russia "very much values" its relations with Turkey.

"The Republic of Turkey has so far taken a very responsible, sovereign and thought-out stance on a whole range of regional and global problems that we face. And this position has made a positive impression on us," he said on Friday.

The Twitter post was not the first reference to alleged Russian meddling that Mr Kilicdaroglu has made. Earlier this month, he warned government officials against making deals with what he called the "dark web" to "interfere" in the vote.

He alleged that deals had been made by the Turkish government with "serious foreign hackers" who were were paid in Bitcoin currencies. Presidential Communications Director Fahrettin Altun dismissed the remarks as "irrational slander".

Mr Kilicdaroglu recently told the BBC that, if he wins the presidency, he will reorient Turkey, and prioritise relations with the West, not the Kremlin.

However, his foreign policy adviser Unal Cevikoz told the Russian state-backed channel RT that "there will not be serious change in foreign policy" towards Russia and that he believes Mr Kilicdaroglu "will have good relations" with Russia's Vladimir Putin.

Former civil servant Mr Kilicdaroglu, who is 74, will represent a coalition of opposition groups at Sunday's election. He is thought to have a serious chance to unseat Mr Erdogan.

More than 64 million people are expected vote at home and abroad.

If no candidate gets at least 50% plus one vote in the first round, the presidential election will go to a second round on 28 May between the two who received the most votes.

Newsletter

Related Articles

PanamaTimes
0:00
0:00
Close
Mexican Drug Lords El Mayo and El Chapo's Son Arrested in Texas
World's Hottest Day Recorded on July 21
Joe Biden Withdraws from 2024 US Presidential Race
A Week of Turmoil: Key Moments in US Politics
Global IT Outage Sparks Major Concerns
Global IT Outage Unveils Digital Vulnerabilities
Secret Service Criticized for Lack of Sniper Protection During Trump Shooting
Colombian Court Annuls Amazon Tribes’ Carbon Credit Deal
Sunita Williams Safe on ISS, to Address Earth on July 10
Biden Affirms Commitment To Presidential Race
Boeing Pleads Guilty Over 737 MAX Crashes
Beryl Storm Hits Texas, Killing 2 and Causing Major Power Outages
2024 Predicted to Be World's Hottest Year
Macron Faces New Political Challenges Despite Election Relief
Florida Man Arrested Over Attempt to Withdraw One Cent
Anger mounts at Biden’s top team after disastrous debate
Bolivian President Luis Arce Denies 'Self-Coup' Allegations
Steve Bannon Begins 4-Month Prison Sentence
Biden Warns of 'Dangerous Precedent' After Supreme Court Immunity Ruling in Trump Case
Elon Musk Accuses Kamala Harris of Misleading Post on Trump's Abortion Stance
Hunter Biden Sues Fox News Over 'Revenge Porn' Allegations
New York Times Editorial Board Urges Biden to Exit Presidential Race
US Supreme Court Overturns Obstruction Charges Against January 6 Rioters
US Voters Prefer Biden's Democracy Approach, Trump's Economy Plan: Report
Attempted Coup in Bolivia: President Urges Public Mobilization
Top-Secret US Underwater Drone 'Manta Ray' Revealed on Google Maps
United States Bans Kaspersky Antivirus
Inside El Salvador’s 40,000 Inmate Mega-Prison
Toyota, Mazda, Honda, and Suzuki have committed fraud; falsified safety test results
El Salvador's Bitcoin Holdings Reach $350 Million
Teens Forming Friendships with AI Chatbots
WhatsApp Rolls Out Major Redesign
Neuralink's First Brain Implant Experiences Issue
Apple Unveils New iPad Pro with M4 Chip, Misleading AI Claims
OpenAI to Announce Google Search Competitor
Apple Apologizes for Controversial iPad Pro Ad Featuring Instrument Destruction
German politician of the AFD party, Marie-Thérèse Kaiser was just convicted & fined $6,000+
Changpeng Zhao Sentenced to Four Months in Jail
Biden Administration to Relax Marijuana Regulations
101-Year-Old Woman Mistaken for a Baby by American Airlines: Comical Mix-Up during Flight Check-in
King Charles and Camilla enjoying the Inuit voice singing performance in Canada.
New Study: Vaping May Lower Fertility in Women Trying to Get Pregnant
U.S. DOJ Seeks Three-Year Sentence for Binance Founder Changpeng Zhao
Headlines - Thursday, 23 April 2024
Illinois Woman Wins $45M Lawsuit Against Johnson & Johnson and Kenvue for Mesothelioma Linked to Baby Powder
Panama's lates news for Friday, April 19
Creative menu of a Pizza restaurant..
You can be a very successful player, but a player with character is another level!
Experience the Future of Dining: My Visit to an AI-Powered Burger Joint
Stabbing rampage terror attack in Sydney, at least four people killed, early reports that a baby was among those stabbed.
×