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Top Turkish Diplomat Slams Kilicdaroglu Over Russia Meddling Claims

© AP Photo / Stephanie LecocqTurkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu gives a joint statement with European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell prior to their meeting in Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2021.
Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu gives a joint statement with European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell prior to their meeting in Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 21, 2021. - Sputnik International, 1920, 21.05.2023
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ANKARA (Sputnik) - Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has criticized opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu for falsely accusing Russia of meddling in the presidential race, which will be decided next Sunday.
Kilicdaroglu said ahead of the first round of voting that Russia was interfering in the electoral process but gave no proof or details to support his claim. The Kremlin denied the accusation.
"Mr. Kilicdaroglu has been threatening Russia. It is wrong to undermine our ties with a country like that," Cavusoglu told the Haberturk news channel in an interview.
The minister said he had asked Kilicdaroglu, who will challenge President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the May 28 runoff, if he had any evidence of Russian meddling, to which he responded with "It was my impression."
Cavusoglu said the aspiring president should "be more serious" and refrain from hurling groundless accusations at other countries based on his gut feeling.
The diplomat also denied that Russia’s decision to allow Turkiye to delay gas payments until 2024 had anything to do with the elections. Cavusoglu said Turkiye was negotiating deferred gas payments with all suppliers after a surge in prices last year.
On Syria, Cavusoglu said Turkiye was negotiating refugee returns with the Syrian government. He estimated that a half million Syrians had returned from Turkiye to so-called safe zones in their home country.
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