Willie R. Tubbs, FISM News

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Recep Tayyip Erdogan will remain the leader of Turkey for another half decade after a rather close runoff win Sunday.

Turkey, which much like the United States, has grown divided in recent years, didn’t exactly give Erdogan a mandate — he defeated Kemal Kilicdaroglu 52.1% to 47.9% — but the nation showed it was still behind the man who has sat atop the country since 2014.

“The only winner today is Turkey,” Reuters quoted Erdogan as saying. “I thank every single one of our people who once again gave us the responsibility to govern the country five more years.”

Kilicdaroglu was far from congratulatory in defeat, calling the process “the most unfair election in years,” but he has accepted the results.

In the United States, President Joe Biden celebrated Erdogan’s reelection, which in terms of American interests is a mixed result. Erdogan has shown a willingness to bend, albeit at a price, on matters of interest to Europe and the West. He famously refused to allow Finland to join NATO, but eventually relented after being offered various enticements.

“Congratulations to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Türkiye on his re-election,” Biden tweeted. “I look forward to continuing to work together as NATO Allies on bilateral issues and shared global challenges.”

However, it would be inaccurate to consider Erdogan a friend of the West. Indeed, he is far more closely tied to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who Erdogan referred to as a “dear friend.”

This did not stop Western leaders from lining up to extend a collective olive branch, one that figures to be important in the continued geopolitical struggle between the West and Russia.

“Congratulations to @RTErdogan,” United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak tweeted. “I look forward to continuing the strong collaboration between our countries, from growing trade to tackling security threats as NATO allies.

French President Emmanuel Macron and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also offered their congratulations.

Like so many Western leaders, Erdogan has faced an immense inflation challenge in recent years. He pledged in his victory speech to make that the primary issue of his next term.

Detractors have accused Erdogan of being anti-democracy as well as anti-Kurdish. Turkey’s Kurdish minority has recently expressed concern that Erdogan, who has ridden a nationalistic platform to reelection, poses a threat to their safety.

Erdogan has said he plans to unite the nation under shared values and has denied any wrongdoing in relation to Kurds or the function of democracy in Turkey.