German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel echoed a similar sentiment.
“The tight referendum result shows how deeply divided Turkish society is, and that means a big responsibility for the Turkish leadership and for President Erdogan personally,” said the German leaders. U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May has yet to publicly comment.
Meanwhile, Turkey’s Erdogan energetically criticized the electoral monitors complaining to reporters on Monday that, “the crusader mentality in the West and its servants at home have attacked us.”
“We neither see, hear, nor acknowledge the political reports you’ll prepare. We’ll continue on our path. Talk to the hand. This country has carried out the most democratic elections, not seen anywhere in the West,” he continued defiantly.
Trump’s relatively enthusiastic support for Erdogan’s victory is likely to be the result of a judgment call that the latter is here to stay and that Turkey will be a key U.S. ally in a difficult region, necessitating solid relations with the regime, according to Tim Ash, economist at BlueBay Asset Management.
“I guess Trump is also mindful that Russia is circling around Turkey, and offering alternative alliances for this lynchpin NATO ally,” posited Ash in an email on Tuesday morning.
“The call will be greatly appreciated by Erdogan who took great exception to the (Barack) Obama administration and its failure to do enough to support him in/around last year’s coup,” he added.
