Kemal Kilicdaroglu, a rival of Turkish President Erdogan in the upcoming election, accused Russia of interfering to discredit the opposition.
"Dear Russian friends, you are behind the staged videos, the spread of conspiracy theories, and the use of fake technology that has been exposed in this country," Kilicdaroglu, a CHP candidate, tweeted on May 11. "If you want our friendship to remain after May 15, stop interfering in the Turkish state."
The allegations came after candidate Muharrem Ince withdrew from the race. Ince said his decision was related to being targeted in a "slander" campaign on social media with manipulated images of him meeting women and driving luxury cars.
With Ince's withdrawal, the race for the Turkish presidency now has three candidates: incumbent leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan of the AKP party, Kilicdaroglu, and Sinan Ogan of the Victory party.
Kilicdaroglu said that his party has evidence that Russia is responsible for the spread of fake news online.
CHP candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu campaigns in Ankara on May 12. Photo: AFP
The Kremlin has rejected Kilicdaroglu's accusations. "Stop the accusations of election interference. If anyone provided Kilicdaroglu with such information, they are liars," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, while emphasizing that Moscow "appreciates" its bilateral relationship with Ankara. "Turkey maintains a very responsible, opinionated, and thoughtful stance on the range of regional and global issues we face."
Turkish President Erdogan also spoke out in defense of Russia and President Vladimir Putin.
"Kemal Kilicdaroglu is attacking Russia and President Putin. I will not be pleased with him attacking Putin," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said during a televised campaign rally on May 12. "Our relationship with Russia is no less important than our relationship with the United States."
During his campaign rallies, Erdogan showed videos that gave the impression that Kilicdaroglu had connections to members of Kurdish militias, which Turkey and its allies consider "terrorists."
Türkiye held a general election on May 14th. The candidate who receives more than 50% of the vote in the first round becomes president. If no candidate receives a majority of the votes, the election proceeds to a second round with the two candidates who received the most support in the first round.
Türkiye maintains contact with both Russia and Ukraine, while Erdogan has a good relationship with Putin. Since the outbreak of hostilities, Ankara has condemned Moscow's use of force but has refused to impose sanctions. At the same time, Ankara has supplied Kyiv with weapons and combat drones, including Bayraktar drones. Türkiye is also a party to a UN-brokered agreement allowing the export of grain from Ukrainian ports.
Huyen Le (According to Al Jazeera , AFP )
Source link
Comment (0)