Erdogan sworn in to 3rd term in Turkey

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, centre, visits the Anitkabir, the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, in Ankara, Turkey, Saturday, June 3, 2023. Turkey's longtime leader, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, took the oath of office on Saturday, ushering in his third presidential term that followed three stints as prime minister. (Yavuz Ozden/DIA Images via AP)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, centre, visits the Anitkabir, the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, in Ankara, Turkey, Saturday, June 3, 2023. Turkey's longtime leader, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, took the oath of office on Saturday, ushering in his third presidential term that followed three stints as prime minister. (Yavuz Ozden/DIA Images via AP)

ANKARA, Turkey -- Turkey's longtime leader, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, took the oath of office Saturday, ushering in his third presidential term that followed three stints as prime minister.

Erdogan, 69, won a new five-year term in a runoff presidential race last month that could stretch his 20-year rule in the key NATO country that straddles Europe and Asia into a quarter-century. The country of 85 million controls NATO's second-largest army, hosts millions of refugees and played a crucial role in brokering a deal that allowed the shipment of Ukraine grain across the Black Sea, averting a global food crisis.

The republic will be celebrating its centennial in October, and so presiding over a new "Turkish century" became an important campaign slogan for Erdogan. During his inauguration ceremony Saturday at the presidential palace, he hailed "the start of the Turkish century, a new period of glory for our country."

"I invite all 81 provinces to come together in fraternity. Let us leave behind the resentments of the campaign. Let us find a way to make up for hurt feelings. Let's all work together to build the Turkish century," he said.

He also expressed his intention to introduce a new constitution, saying: "We will liberate our democracy from the present constitution produced by [the 1980] military coup, and strengthen it with a freedom-promoting, civilian and inclusive constitution."

Dozens of foreign dignitaries attended the inauguration ceremony, including NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Carl Bildt, a high-profile former Swedish prime minister. Stockholm hopes to press Erdogan to lift his country's objections to Sweden's membership in the military alliance -- which requires unanimous approval by all allies.

Turkey accuses Sweden of being too soft on Kurdish militants and other groups that Turkey considers to be terrorists. NATO wants to bring Sweden into the alliance by the time allied leaders meet July 11-12 in Lithuania, but Turkey and Hungary have yet to endorse the bid.

Other leaders in attendance included Azerbaijan's Ilham Aliyev, Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro, Armenia's Nikol Pashinyan, Pakistan's Shahbaz Sharif and Libya's Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, as well as several other leaders from Africa, Central Asia and the Balkans.

The inauguration ceremony was preceded by a swearing-in ceremony in parliament. Supporters waited outside despite the heavy rain, covering Erdogan's car with red carnations as he arrived. From there, a procession of cavalry in blue uniforms escorted the president's convoy to the inauguration ceremony.


Erdogan was sworn in amid a host of domestic challenges ahead, including a battered economy, pressure for the repatriation of millions of Syrian refugees and the need to rebuild after a devastating earthquake in February that killed 50,000 and leveled entire cities in the south of the country.

Erdogan is already Turkey's longest-serving leader. He has solidified his rule through constitutional changes that transformed Turkey's presidency from a largely ceremonial role to a powerful office.

Critics say his second decade in office was marred by sharp democratic backsliding including the erosion of institutions such as the media and judiciary and the jailing of opponents and critics.

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