Erdogan's victory welcomed in Egypt

11 August 2014
Source: Middle East Monitor

Egyptian commentators and former politicians have welcomed the electoral victory of outgoing Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyib Erdogan on Sunday.

Former advisor to the ousted president Mohamed Morsi and political scientist Dr Seif Abdel-Fattah welcomed the victory in a congratulatory note on Facebook, while former minister of investment under Morsi, Yehia Hamed, congratulated Erdogan, haling his "persistence in supporting causes of liberty and democracy and standing against oppressive regimes."

Human right activist Haitham Abu Khalil hailed the "principled competition" between Erdogan and his rival candidates, as the opposition's candidate Ekmelettin Ihsanoglu congratulated Erdogan for his victory.

Similarly, political activist and Coptic youth leader Rami Jan congratulated Erdogan and the Turkish people. "Erdogan, this unique man has changed the political system in Turkey for good," he said on Facebook.

Link: 
 www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/africa/13385-erdogans-victory-welcomed-in-egypt.

Turkey's Erdogan condemns Israel over Gaza

07.18.14 

By SUZAN FRASER

Associated Press

Source:Miami Herald

 ANKARA, Turkey -- Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan intensified his fiery rhetoric against Israel over its ground invasion of Gaza on Friday, accusing the country of state terrorism and genocide and saying the two countries will not mend ties on his watch. 

Earlier, hundreds of protesters pelted the top Israeli diplomat's residence in Ankara with stones, and the private Dogan news agency said police in Istanbul used tear gas and water cannon to disperse protesters trying to enter the Israeli Consulate grounds. Turkish legislators leaving a late-night debate in parliament also protested against Israel.

Turkey intensified security around Israeli missions but the demonstrations prompted Israel to call home the families of Israeli diplomats and to keep staff in the embassy and consulate to a minimum.
Tzachi Moshe, a spokesman for Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, said Israel "sharply protested the flagrant violation of diplomatic rules."

Erdogan told reporters after Muslim Friday prayers: "Israel threatens world peace. Israel threatens peace in the Middle East. Therefore, I personally, can never contemplate anything positive with Israel as long as I remain on duty."

"Israel is at the moment waging terrorism; Israel at the moment is carrying out genocide," he said.
Turkey and Israel had been working toward improving ties that were soured after Israeli commandos stormed a pro-Palestinian aid ship in 2010, killing eight Turks and one Turkish-American. Turkey expelled the Israeli ambassador and recalled its own top envoy following the incident.

Israel apologized to Turkey for the deaths and agreed to pay compensation under a U.S.-brokered arrangement in 2013. Turkish officials said in March the sides were close to reaching a compensation deal that would lead to a restoration of ties.

U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the department believes Erdogan's statements are "offensive and wrong."

"And, of course, this kind of provocative rhetoric is unhelpful and distracts from urgent efforts to bring about a cease-fire," she said.

Tia Goldenberg in Jerusalem and Matthew Lee in Washington contributed.

 

Link:  http://www.miamiherald.com/2014/07/18/4242388/turkeys-erdogan-condemns-israel.html.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2014/07/18/4242388/turkeys-erdogan-condemns-israel.html#storylink=cpy

 

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2014/07/18/4242388/turkeys-erdogan-condemns-

By SUZAN FRASER

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By SUZAN FRASER

Associated Press

By SUZAN FRASER

Associated Press

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Erdogan criticises Gul for congratulating Al-Sisi: We do not congratulate coups

27 June 2014
Source: Middle East Monitor

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has criticised his country's president, Abdullah Gul, in front of EU ambassadors in Turkey.

The criticism came during a meeting between Erdogan and EU ambassadors over dinner, when Erdogan criticised Gul's congratulations for Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, the leader of the recent coup in Egypt, upon his assumption of the post of the presidency. Jordan' s As-Sabeel newspaper quoted Erdogan as saying: "I must be honest, this congratulations to me holds no meaning, because it is not possible to offer congratulations to a coup leader."

Erdogan said that Egypt still plays a pivotal role in the future of the Middle East, expressing his wishes for Egypt and its people to enjoy actual democracy and stressing that his government's attitude towards Egypt stems from this point.

He added that Egypt's legitimate president, Mohamad Morsi, who came to power after winning a popular election with 54 per cent of the vote, was deliberately isolated to allow the army to bring about a military coup against a democratically elected government.

Erdogan stressed that the Turkish position has not changed on the issue of Egypt, and he criticised those countries that are avoiding calling what happened in Egypt a coup and accepting what he called the recent non-transparent sham of an election.

Link:  www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/europe/12400-erdogan-criticises-gul-for-congratulating-al-sisi-we-do-not-congratulate-coups.

Turkey's Erdogan vows to 'liquidate' treachery at home and abroad

April 8, 2014 
By Jonny Hogg and Gulsen Solaker
Source: Yahoo News

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday local elections had given him a mandate to "liquidate" the enemies he sees as contriving a corruption scandal and would go after their international activities and sources of funding.

In his first parliamentary speech since his ruling AK Party dominated March 30 municipal polls, Erdogan said "traitors" responsible for a stream of graft allegations and the illegal tapping of thousands of phones would be brought to account.

Erdogan accuses Islamic cleric Fethullah Gulen, a former ally now based in the United States, of orchestrating the graft scandal to undermine him. Gulen's Hizmet network claims millions of followers and holds influence in the police and judiciary.

Erdogan has accused the movement of running a "parallel state", spying on thousands of government officials over years and leaking manipulated recordings in a bid to unseat him ahead of last month's elections.

"March 30 is the day when the page was turned on tutelage, when the monuments of hubris were felled, and the privileges (of an elite) were lost forever," Erdogan said.

"The nation gave us a mandate for the liquidation of the parallel state. We will not have the slightest hesitation. We shall never forget the betrayal," he said.

He said the government would follow up on what he called the network's international links and investigate all "illegally collected monies and donations".

The movement, also known as Cemaat (JEH-maat), "The Community", has for decades been a spearhead of Turkish cultural influence and commerce overseas, especially in the assertive moves into Africa, the Middle East and Asia in the years after the AK Party took power in 2002.

Cemaat says the Turkish government is already putting pressure on governments to close down its global network of schools which have been a major source of influence and revenue. Government officials say Turkish embassies have stopped backing schools and business linked to Gulen.

Hizmet denies using followers in the police and judiciary to launch a graft inquiry targeting Erdogan family members, ministers and businessmen, or any involvement in the illicit recording of top officials.

Erdogan's Islamist-rooted AK Party relied on Hizmet to break the grip on politics of the army, which carried out three coups between 1960 and 1980 and forced an Islamist-led government from power in 1997. But he now casts the fight with Hizmet as a continuation of that struggle against tutelage in any form, the final chapter in a battle for democracy and justice.

"They will answer before the courts. But not in front of their parallel courts; they will answer before the court of the nation," Erdogan said.

PRESIDENTIAL AMBITION

Erdogan has made little secret of his ambition to take up a powerful presidency, but such is his determination to finish the battle with Gulen that it remains unclear whether he will run in the first direct elections for the post in August.

He is barred by AK Party rules from standing for a fourth term as prime minister, currently a more powerful role than the largely ceremonial presidency; but the party could amend those rules with relative ease if it feels his leadership is needed to see out the feud with Gulen, senior officials have said.

Erdogan would seek to shape the presidency as a more powerful role than that played by incumbent Abdullah Gul. Erdogan was quoted on Tuesday as saying the direct election of the next president would automatically bestow the role with greater powers.

"The responsibilities will be different after these elections. It will not be a president of protocol, but one that sweats, runs around, works hard," he was quoted as saying by the pro-government Sabah newspaper.

Until now, Turkey's parliament has elected the head of state. Gul is a close Erdogan ally and co-founder of the AK Party, tipped as a possible prime minister if Erdogan were to run for what he would shape as the top job.

Main Turk opposition loses bid for election recount in Ankara

April 4, 2014
Source: Yahoo News

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's main opposition CHP party has lost a bid to force a recount of the results of Sunday's local election in the capital Ankara, a party source said on Friday.

Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's Islamist-rooted AK Party largely dominated Turkey's electoral map in the nationwide communal polls, keeping control of the main cities including Istanbul and Ankara.

The source said the CHP would appeal the decision against a recount taken by the Ankara election board.

But a reversal of the Ankara result would have been little more than a consolation prize for the opposition, who failed to dent Erdogan's support nationally in a vote that became a referendum on his rule as he battles allegations of corruption.

Erdogan dismisses the allegations as politically motivated. No official results have been announced, but informal tallies from Turkish news channels put the AK Party at 45 percent nationwide, compared to 28 percent for the CHP.

In Ankara, the AK Party's candidate and incumbent Mayor Melih Gokcek secured 44.6 percent of the votes, narrowly beating CHP nominee Mansur Yavas on 43.8 percent, according to provisional electoral board results.

Since Monday, hundreds of volunteers, mostly students, have been comparing and recounting votes for CHP after widespread allegations of irregularities spread on social media.

(Reporting by Gulsen Solaker; Writing by Nick Tattersall; Editing by Dasha Afanasieva/Mark Heinrich)

Turkey PM has boost in apparent local election win

March 31.2014
Source: mail.com

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday hailed what appeared to be a decisive victory for his party in local elections, providing a boost that could help him emerge from a spate of recent troubles.

Erdogan was not on the ballot in the countrywide polls, but he campaigned as if he were. Hours after the polls closed, Turkish newswires suggested that his party was significantly outstripping its results of about 39 percent in the last local elections in 2009 and roundly beating the main opposition party.

With nearly 70 percent of the votes counted, Erdogan's party was above 46 percent of the votes while the main opposition CHP was at just over 30 percent, according to state-run TRT television. "I thank my Lord for granting such a victory, such a meaningful result," Erdogan said at a victory rally in Ankara, speaking to a crowd of supporters who had been chanting, "Turkey is proud of you!"

Incumbent candidates from Erdogan's Justice and Development Party, better known by its Turkish acronym AKP, also were leading in high-profile races in Istanbul and Ankara. Voter turnout appeared to be heavy, with people forming long queues at polling stations.

The strong results were a big boost for the prime minister following a tumultuous corruption scandal. In recent days, Erdogan has also provoked outrage at home and abroad by blocking access to Twitter and YouTube.

Fadi Hakura, a Turkey analyst at London-based independent policy institute Chatham House, said neither corruption issues nor media freedoms determined the elections. "Overall, the people are happy with the government's economic performance," he said.

"His victory speech was uncompromising, tough and polarizing," the analyst added. "It is an indication that he will intensify his current robust style of leadership." The result could embolden Erdogan to run for president in an election scheduled for August. Prior to Sunday's showing, he had appeared to be leaning against that route, which has risks. In a direct vote, he would have to win 50 percent in a country that is deeply polarized over his rule.

Erdogan and his party have dominated Turkish politics over the past decade in a period of great prosperity. The party came to power backed by a pious Muslim base looking for greater standing in a country that had for decades favored a secular elite. But AKP, whose party symbol is a light bulb, has also cultivated an identity of pragmatism and competency.

That image has been damaged by the corruption scandal, with a series of leaked tapes bringing down four ministers with revelations of bribe-taking and cover-ups. One tape allegedly involves Erdogan and family members, but he and his allies have rejected the allegations as a plot orchestrated by followers of U.S.-based Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, a former Erdogan ally who has split with him.

Following the results, Erdogan promised retribution against Gulen's movement. "We shall enter into their caves," he said. "They will pay and account for their deeds." In the wake of the scandal, Erdogan has shuffled thousands of police officers and tightened control of the judiciary, which had launched investigations. The moves prompted concern that Erdogan was moving toward more authoritarian rule.

But in his victory speech, Erdogan said that democracy in Turkey is strong. "We have the democracy which the West is longing for," he said.

Understanding the conflict between the Gulen Movement and the Turkish government

28 March 2014
Furkan Torlak
Source: Middle East Monitor

 In the past week, the Washington-based Bipartisan Policy Center published a report titled, "Turkey's Local Election: Actors, Factors, and Implications" signed by Alan Makosky, Eric Edelman and Morton Abramowitz, all known for their poor judgment of Turkey's democratization process.

The report conducted an analysis of Turkey's upcoming local elections through reading basic conflict parameters and tried to explain the elections to American policymakers. The report set forth the following hypothesis: Between 2003 and 2010, the main division dominating Turkish politics was the struggle between the secular and conservative segments of the society. The conservative wing was represented by the Gülen Movement and the AK Party, both based along the lines of the National Vision Movement (MGH) founded by Necmettin Erbakan. The secular strata lost following the 2010 referendum, starting a brand new course in Turkish politics.

According to the report, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan did not fulfill his democratization promises and chose the path of authoritarianism instead. Tensions escalated as a direct result of his ambitions and transformed into a conflict between the Gülen Movement and the government. The local elections came along in this atmosphere and are thought to be the first response to the political turbulence that Turkey entered. The report declares Erdoğan will become more rigid following the local elections and will increase oversight over the system in an effort to protect his dominance.

In a strange kind of way, the report says the only way election results will be considered significant is if the AK Party loses. As it is clearly evident, the report is not patient inasmuch as waiting for the elections. With an explicit bias, the report argues that Erdoğan has become a burden on the conservative Islamic segment of the population.

Primarily, one of the remarkable aspects of the report is that it establishes the Gülen Movement as the main actor, that started the probe on Dec. 17 and revealed the corruption allegations "in accordance with procedures." This depiction on its own seems to verify the existence of a parallel structure within state institutions from an external viewpoint regardless of how "poor" the judgment may be.

However, the report's depiction of the existing political conflict is considerably far from reality. Reducing the struggle that occurred in Turkey between 2003 and 2010 to a conflict between the secularists and conservatives is an allegation that is difficult to defend. In fact, the conflict that took place was a struggle on a much larger scale against the Old Turkey's tutelage regime by a wide segment of conservatives acting in accord with reformist lines toward a New Turkey, along with the block comprised of liberals and Kurdish politicians previously marginalized by the state.

Yes, with the 2010 referendum Turkey reached a juncture whereby the tutelage regime unique to Old Turkey would be left behind. The historical juncture began with a new Constitution and brought into action the reconciliation process as a peace project to resolve the Kurdish issue. It would also bring into action the democratization packages in order to provide cohesion between the state and the nation. The prospect of these expectations increased with the AK Party's decisive victory in the 2011 general elections.

As a matter of fact, the AK Party took initiative to create a new Constitution. Despite having a majority in Parliament, the party adopted an approach that emphasized "reconciliation" and led the establishment of a constitutional commission where all parties would be represented equally. After long discussions, the AK Party proposed the approval of articles reaching an agreement in Parliament. It announced and promulgated the democratization package. Many of the steps that were taken by the party indicated Erdoğan did not diverge from the final destination of democratization.

However, during this new course, the Gülen Movement started to falter. The movement first made a u-turn with regard to the solution of the Kurdish issue, a task taken upon by Prime Minister Erdoğan, who undertook political risks. The movement tried to sabotage the process with the Kurdish Communities Union (KCK) case. The ensuing National Intelligence Agency (MİT) crisis was interpreted as an attempt to hinder the reconciliation process and aimed to sending a warning message to Erdoğan, rather than a personal settlement with [MİT chief] Hakan Fidan, whom they have known since his position as president of TİKA [Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency].

The Gülen Movement also turned a blind eye to the AK Party's efforts regarding constitutional reforms and disdained the democratization packages. It attempted to manipulate through the use of a parallel structure within state institutions granting them significant control. The movement could not break away from the characteristics of the Old Turkey and became a pos- sessor of those characteristics in attempting to shape the new Constitution, determine the fate of politics and be- come a tutelage candidate.

These details stand out, especially when one goes beyond a neoconservative interpretation of the developments in Turkey. Without going beyond this analysis, it is not be possible to understand the reason why the movement did not receive support from conservative circles throughout the conflict with the government or the suspicions of the secular circles and the detached approach to Kurdish politics. So much so that during this process, even other branches of the Nur Movement - from which the Gülen Movement originated - took an opposing stance toward the movement!

The current state of affairs indicates the struggle has become one that brought the government and the movement against each other rather than the prime minister's personal efforts to protect his power. This is clearly evident by the fact that different segments of the society within the bureaucracy have explicitly expressed their support for the prime minister and the government through a notion of protecting the state. A senior bureaucrat who does not identify himself as an AK Party supporter said: "The prime minister of the Turkish Republic can only come to power through elections and leave through elections. All attempts apart from this will find themselves facing the state."

Accordingly, interpreting the current situation as the prime minister's attempts to increase his control over the system as claimed by the report does not seem realistic. In actuality, the current process is one of normalization within different ranks of state institutions and the bureaucracy.

In other words, this is a period to terminate the tutelage of a minority over state institutions, because reform in the bureaucracy is moving toward a resettlement inclusive of National Vision, Islamist, Nur Movement, nationalist, social democrat, liberal, left-wing and Alevi circles. Perhaps the current tensions are steps on the way to the New Turkey.

Bipartisan Policy Center report

On March 14, 2014, the Bipartisan Policy Center published a report titled, "Turkey's Local Elections: Actors, Factors and Implications." The Washington-based think tank previously published reports on Turkey. This particular report was compiled by Morton Abramowitz and Eric Edelman, former ambassadors of the United States to Turkey. The report mainly claims that the current political situation in Turkey is "highly worrisome" for American interests as the authors claim the country is becoming less reliable and stable, going as far as comparing it to Saudi Arabia and Pakistan simply based on the notion that these countries share Islamic values. The authors disregard the radically different political cultures and economic and social situation in these countries, reducing the judgment to a monolithic rhetoric. Bipartisan Policy Center describes itself as a think tank which "drives principled solutions through rigorous analysis, reasoned negotiation and respectful dialogue" charac- terized by "politically balanced policy making with strong, proactive advocacy and outreach." The Center was founded in 2007 by former Senate Majority Leaders Howard Baker, Tom Daschle, Bob Dole and George J. Mitchell.
This article was first published by Daily Sabah

Link:  www.middleeastmonitor.com/articles/europe/10584-understanding-the-conflict-between-the-gulen-movement-and-the-turkish-government.

Turkish PM denounces pro-Gulen channel's designation of Palestinian resistance as terrorists

16 March 2014
Source: Middle East Monitor

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan denounced a pro-Gulen channel for framing the Palestinian resistance in Gaza as "terrorists".

In a speech before his supporters in the southern Turkish city of Antalia, Erdogan said he was not surprised at the fact that the Gulen group would label Palestinian resistance as terrorism, since they did so before when their media outlets dismissed the Mavi Marmara's Gaza Freedom Flotilla humanitarian activists as terrorists.

"The results of municipal elections of March 30 will dash the hopes of this group," Erdogan said.

Erdogan slammed the recent phone taping attempts as a crime, vowing to prosecute all those involved, hinting at the "parallel entity" which the government accuses of carrying out these operations.

On Saturday, the Gulen-owned STV channel broadcast a news story which read: "The Israeli Air Defense forces bombed 7 terrorist sites in Gaza."

Link: /www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/europe/10326-turkish-pm-denounces-pro-gulen-channels-designation-of-palestinian-resistance-as-terrorists.

Erdogan: I will not give in to any coup attempts

21 February 2014
Source: Middle East Monitor

Turkey will not give in to future coup attempts or pressure, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday.

"We will face any future coup attempts just as we have faced them over the past 12 years and as we faced the recent coup attempt. We will not give in to any conspiracies or pressures," Erdogan said in a speech made before the Confederation of Turkish Labour Unions.
He went on to stress that the political factions are facing the recent attacks collectively "because we stopped the wheel of treason. However, these attacks will not affect us, we have grown used to them since the February 28 [1997] coup, the organisers of which did not commit as much immorality as we are witnessing today."

Link: https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/europe/9895-erdogan-i-will-not-give-in-to-any-coup-attempts.

Turkish PM reportedly sued for for libel by former ally

February 4, 2014
Source: Yahoo News

Istanbul (AFP) - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's ally-turned-rival Fethullah Gulen is suing him in the wake of a deeply damaging corruption scandal, a newspaper close to Gulen's movement reported Tuesday.

Gulen, an Islamic preacher living in self-imposed exile in the United States, is claiming 100,000 lira (32,700 euros, $44,200) in damages from Erdogan for allegedly denigrating and insulting remarks, the Zaman daily said.

Erdogan, 59, Turkey's strongman premier since 2003, has blamed a "parallel" state of Gulen's associates within the judiciary and police for a major graft probe that opened in December implicating members of Erdogan's inner circle and their families.

Erdogan has sacked or reassigned hundreds of police and prosecutors, portraying the allegations of shady dealings as part of a plot to weaken his government ahead of local elections on March 30 and a presidential poll in August.

The purges, coupled with a heavy-handed police crackdown on protests last June, moves to exert more control on the judiciary and mooted Internet legislation have raised deep concern at home and abroad about mainly Muslim Turkey.

Gulen's Hizmet movement does indeed wield considerable influence in the judiciary and police but he has denied being behind the corruption probe.

His organisation issued a statement last month saying the government "seems to be poisoned with power".
The Journalists and Writers Foundation, a group linked to Gulen, listed on Tuesday a string of recent "deeply worrying developments" that risk making Turkey "lose its character as a state governed by the rule of law".
These included limits on the freedom of expression, unlawful wiretaps, "purging" civil servants, pressure on the media, the use of "hate-centred language", accusations of "treason" and efforts to place the judiciary under government control, it said.

Turkey purges regulators, state TV in graft probe backlash

January 18, 2014
By Humeyra Pamuk
Source:Yahoo News

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey has extended a purge of official bodies to the banking and telecoms regulators and state TV, firing dozens of executives in moves that appear to broaden Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's backlash against a corruption investigation.

The authorities have already reassigned thousands of police officers and about 20 prosecutors, and fired some state television officials in response to the corruption investigation, the biggest challenge to Erdogan's 11-year rule.

Investigators are believed to have been looking into allegations of corruption and bribery involving trade in gold with Iran and big real estate projects, although full details of their charges have not been made public.

The combative prime minister says the investigations, which began a month ago with arrests of high profile figures including the sons of three of his cabinet ministers, are part of an attempted "judicial coup".

His opponents say they fear a purge of official bodies will destroy the independence of the judiciary, police and media.

"It's like reformatting a computer. They are changing the whole system and people in various positions to protect the government," said Akin Unver, assistant professor of International Relations in Istanbul-based Kadir Has University.

Among dozens of officials dismissed in the latest sackings, Turkish media reported on Saturday that the deputy head of the banking watchdog BDDK and two department heads had been removed.

Five department chiefs were fired at the Telecommunications Directorate (TIB), a body that carries out electronic surveillance as well as serving as telecoms regulator, and a dozen people were fired at Turkey's state channel TRT, including department heads and senior news editors.

A government official said the firings were carried out for "the benefit of the public" and more could come: "Right now we are working on this issue and if we identify cases problematic to the public's benefit, more dismissals could be considered."

Pictures of money-counting machines and reports of cash stacked in the homes of people linked to the graft probe have caused uproar among the Turkish public.

Unver said the aim of the purge at the telecommunications watchdog could be to prevent further videos and pictures being published on the Internet.

"They are seeking a monolithic structure over the Internet," he said.

Several thousand people took to the streets in Turkey's biggest three cities on Saturday demonstrating against a government-led draft bill to increase controls over the Internet.

The bill would give the courts the power to rule on removing online material that "violates individual rights", an article that opponents say is murky and could lead to the arbitrary closure of websites.

In Istanbul's Taksim Square, where police fired teargas and water cannon to disperse the crowd, protesters called for the government to resign. Some chanted: "There are thieves around," referring to the corruption allegations.

SEIZURE OF ASSETS

Erdogan has suggested the graft inquiry, which has led to the resignation of three cabinet ministers and detention of businessmen close to the government, is an attempt to undermine his rule by Fethullah Gulen, a U.S.-based cleric with influence among the police and judiciary.

Earlier in the week the government reassigned twenty high-profile prosecutors, stepping up the purge of the judiciary.

Many of the people who have been fired are believed to be associated with the cleric's Hizmet movement, which claims more than a million followers and runs schools and charities throughout Turkey.

Gulen's lawyer says the cleric has nothing to do with the graft investigations, and his followers say they are victims of a witch hunt.

In a separate move denounced by the opposition as an attempt to target it, Turkish authorities have seized the assets of Mustafa Sarigul, the main opposition CHP party's mayoral candidate for Istanbul.

The state Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) said it seized Sarigul's assets after he and his business partners failed to repay a loan dating back to 1998.

Sarigul denied he had an outstanding debt, describing the move as "a provocation".

"I have not received one single letter from TMSF in 16 years... Those who have lost the trust of the people and carried out this political attack on me will get the answer at the ballot box on March 30," he said, referring to local elections.

Erdogan, who has presided over an extended economic boom that has transformed Turkey and lifted millions of people from poverty, remains the country's most popular politician.

He and his moderate Islamist AK Party have long battled for influence against the secularist military establishment that dominated Turkey over the past century. Conflicts with the judiciary, police and Gulen followers add to his list of enemies.

It is still not clear what effect the crisis will have on Erdogan's political fortunes ahead of local elections approaching in March.

Last year saw mass street demonstrations among Turks who accuse the prime minister of authoritarianism, but those protests did little to undermine Erdogan's support among his conservative base of followers.

 (Additional reporting by Orhan Coskun and Mert Ozkan in Ankara, Ayla Jean Yackley in Istanbul, Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk; Editing by Peter Graff and Andrew Heavens)

Erdogan's son ready to testify over graft probe

January 24, 2014
Source: Yahoo News

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday hit back at critics who have alleged that he has been stalling a corruption investigation reaching his family, while a lawyer says the leader's son was ready to give testimony to prosecutors.

Erdogan last month dismissed four government ministers implicated in a vast corruption and bribery scandal surrounding alleged illicit money transfers to Iran and bribery for construction projects. He then quickly moved to replace police officials involved in the investigation, an action which news reports said thwarted a second corruption probe that sought to question his son, Bilal Erdogan, among others. Police allegedly refused to bring Erdogan's son for questioning on prosecutors' orders.

Erdogan insists the corruption investigation targeting people close to him has been orchestrated by an Islamic movement led by U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen. Erdogan says Gulen's followers have risen to key positions in Turkey's judiciary and police, and that they want to harm the government ahead of local elections in March.

Gulen has denied any involvement in the probe but hundreds of police officials, prosecutors and judges — either directly involved in the investigations or believed to sympathize with the religious movement — have been removed from posts and reassigned to other positions.
 
"If you are honest and honorable, you'll come and show the evidence," Erdogan said in a speech in Ankara on Friday, responding to opposition party accusations that the government was trying to cover up a corruption inquiry focusing on his son.

He then threatened to reveal a corruption file on the opposition party's strong candidate for the mayor of Istanbul in the March local elections, unless the opposition party releases the file by Sunday.

In a more conciliatory gesture, Erdogan said that some articles of much-criticized draft legislation — which critics say aims to tighten government control over the judiciary — could be put on hold. Opposition parties say the measure would allow the government to block corruption investigations, and the European Union expressed concerns, calling on Turkey to respect the principles of rule of law and the separation of powers.

The state-run Anadolu Agency quoted lawyer Ahmet Ozel as saying late Thursday that 33-year old Bilal Erdogan was prepared to give testimony but he had not received any papers summoning him to testify.

"My client is ready to go and testify to prosecutors upon reception of an official notification," Anadolu quoted Ozel as saying.

The statement came following a brawl in parliament where opposition legislators accused the prime minister of obstructing the investigation and of "harboring" a man wanted for questioning. An opposition deputy was briefly hospitalized after being punched by a legislator from Erdogan's party.

Erdogan on Friday refused to apologize to the opposition legislator who was hurt in the scuffles in Parliament, saying opposition deputies had provoked the fight by insulting him and his family.

"Whoever insulted me and my family to such an extent should apologize first," Erdogan said.

Turkish newspapers last month published details of an allegedly leaked prosecutors' summons calling Bilal Erdogan to give testimony as a "suspect" in an investigation into an alleged organized crime syndicate. 

Newspaper reports said the investigation allegedly surrounds irregularities in the operations of an educational foundation whose board members include Bilal Erdogan.

The prosecutor who issued the summons complained that police officers had not carried out his orders for arrests and accused the Istanbul chief prosecutor and police of hampering the probe. He was later removed from the case.

The corruption scandal and Erdogan's response has eroded investor confidence, causing the Turkish lira to plummet to almost daily record lows. Turkey's central bank announced Thursday that it was intervening in the foreign exchange markets but failed to stop the lira's slide.

Erdogan threatens to unveil graft accusations against rival

January 24, 2014
Source: Yahoo News

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan threatened on Friday to t divulge a file of corruption allegations against the main opposition candidate for Istanbul mayor, raising the stakes in a political battle after a graft investigation implicating his own government.

The opposition accused Erdogan of bullying and defied him to make public any accusations he cared to level.

Erdogan, speaking to party members in the capital Ankara, also accused a key business leader of "treason" for saying the government's efforts to reform the judiciary might unnerve investors and deter foreign capital from coming to Turkey.

Erdogan called on Kemal Kilicdaroglu, chairman of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), to disclose what he called corruption allegations in a party file against Mustafa Sarigul, the CHP's candidate for Istanbul mayor in March municipal elections.

"I'm giving you until Sunday. If you don't disclose the corruption file on the Istanbul municipal candidate, I will," Erdogan said in comments aired live on television.

 

He did not make clear what such a file would contain.

CHP Deputy Chairman Haluk Koc, responding to Erdogan, said:

"No one is holding you back. The security forces, judiciary and police are yours. The CHP is here, Sarigul is here, disclose whatever you know.

"Bring it on. Does extortion suit a prime minister? CHP has never bowed down to bullies. It won't take a step back."

Erdogan also accused Kilicdaroglu himself of involvement in the leak of a 2010 sex tape that forced the resignation of his predecessor at the CHP, Deniz Baykal. Erdogan did not elaborate.

 

Turkey's popular leader sees a police investigation into corruption and bribery charges that came to light last month and included the arrest of family members of cabinet ministers and businessmen close to the government as a "coup plot" against the ruling AK Party, in power since 2002.

 

He has responded by removing thousands of police officers and about 120 prosecutors from their posts and reassigned them and by pushing through legal changes that tighten his control over the judiciary.

 

On Thursday, Muharrem Yilmaz, chairman of the business group Tusiad, said such legal changes may not comply with European Union norms and could raise concerns about the rule of law.

 

Erdogan lashed out at Yilmaz, saying such a warning amounted to a threat against the government.

"You can't say, 'International capital won't come.' If you do, it's treason against this country.

"They are threatening their own government by saying foreign investment won't come ... We will take a stance against those who take a stance against the AK Party," Erdogan said.

 

The political turmoil has weighed on Turkish financial markets, with the lira plumbing record lows.

But capital outflows have been relatively limited, with Thursday's successful sale of a $2.5 billion eurobond issue seen as a vote of confidence from foreign investors.

(Reporting by Ayla Jean Yackley; editing by Ralph Boulton)

Erdogan tells Turkish ambassadors to spread word of 'treacherous' plot

21 hours ago
By Tulay Karadeniz
Source: Yahoo News

ANKARA (Reuters) - Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan ordered his ambassadors on Wednesday to confront allies with the "truth" that a graft investigation shaking Ankara was the result of a foreign-backed plot to sabotage Turkey's international standing.

 

Erdogan, visiting Brussels next week, also mockingly rejected European Union expressions of concern about his moves to tighten control over a judiciary he sees as central to the conspiracy. His finance minister said political turbulence may hinder Turkey in reaching a 4 percent growth target this year.

What erupted a month ago as a corruption inquiry involving the sons of three ministers and businessmen close to the government has grown into one of the biggest challenges of Erdogan's 11-year rule and damaged Turkey's image abroad.

Erdogan said politicians, domestic and foreign media and financiers were conspiring against Turkish interests.

"We expect you to exert more effort to defeat this treacherous operation targeting Turkey by telling our partners the truth," Erdogan told the conference of Turkish ambassadors in the capital Ankara.

Details of the corruption allegations have not been made public, but are thought to relate to construction and real estate projects and Turkey's gold trade with Iran.

Erdogan's supporters see U.S.-based Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen - a former ally whose network of followers is influential in the police and judiciary - as a prime mover in a plot backed by foreign collaborators.

"They are trying to deal a heavy blow to Turkey's economy. They are making efforts to push interest rates higher. In order to make international investors uneasy they use every means.

"Most importantly they are working hard to harm Turkey's image in the world," Erdogan said.

He has responded by purging the police of hundreds of officers and seeking tighter control over the appointment of judges and prosecutors, raising alarm in Brussels in particular, which has been engaged in years of protracted EU membership negotiations with Ankara.

EU enlargement commissioner Stefan Fule told Turkey's new EU minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in their first meeting this week that any changes to the judiciary must not call into question Turkey's commitment to meeting EU membership criteria.

Erdogan rejected such concerns.

"I'm sorry but we won't be taken in by evaluation like 'this is contrary to the European Union acquis'. We know how to read and write. We can see what is going on," he said.

ECONOMIC FALLOUT

Erdogan's AK Party has proposed a draft bill giving government more say over the High Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK), which makes top judicial appointments, a move the opposition says would violate the constitution and sees as an attempt to stifle the corruption investigation.

President Abdullah Gul, who would have to ratify the bill, called for compromise on Wednesday, saying Turkey's rival political parties should instead agree on changes to articles in the constitution governing the judiciary.

"There is agreement among the parties that there should be an HSYK which is independent and impartial and within the framework of EU principles," Gul said, adding prospects for a deal should become clear within a couple of days.

But the main opposition CHP said it would only negotiate if Erdogan withdrew the draft bill first, while a senior AK Party official said he was not optimistic of reaching a compromise.

The feud has shaken investor confidence and raised questions about the credibility of Turkey's institutions, helping drive the lira - already battered by waning investor appetite for emerging markets - to historic lows.

Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek said the political turbulence was among factors which could prevent Turkey reaching its target of four percent economic growth this year.

"It makes investors tense both domestically and abroad. This tension will be reflected in consumption and investment decisions and hence in growth," he told a news conference.

Erdogan has overseen strong economic growth in Turkey since coming to power in 2002, transforming its reputation after a series of unstable coalition governments in the 1990s ran into repeated balance of payments problems and economic crises.

The AK Party's reputation for economic management has been one of the cornerstones of its three successive election wins over the past decade, a record Erdogan wants to maintain in the run up to local elections in March and a presidential race which he is expected to contest in August.

(Additional reporting by Adrian Croft in Brussels; Writing by Daren Butler and Nick Tattersall; Editing by Ralph Boulton)

Turkish graft scandal triggers feud over judicial independence

January 10, 2014
By Orhan Coskun
Source: Yahoo News

ANKARA (Reuters) - One of Turkey's most senior legal figures warned Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party on Friday that efforts to tighten its grip on the judiciary would breach the constitution, deepening a crisis triggered by a damaging corruption scandal.

Erdogan has cast a wide-ranging graft investigation, which poses one of the biggest challenges of his 11-year rule, as an attempted "judicial coup" and has responded by purging the police force of hundreds of officers and seeking tighter control over judicial appointments.

His AK Party unveiled plans this week, due to be discussed by parliament's justice commission, to give government more say over the appointment of judges and prosecutors, rolling back reforms championed by the European Union.

"These regulations concerning the independence and impartiality of judges ... will be in contravention of the constitution," said Ahmet Hamsici, deputy chairman of the High Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK), in a 66-page report.

"It is clear that this situation represents a contravention of the principle of judicial independence (and) the separation of powers," said the report, submitted on Friday to the parliamentary commission and seen by Reuters.

The AKP bill, published on parliament's website, proposes changes to the structure of the HSYK, the body responsible for appointments in the judiciary, which would give the justice minister greater power over its activities.

Erdogan's supporters have cast the corruption probe as a smear campaign contrived, ahead of elections this year, by a U.S.-based Islamic cleric, Fethullah Gulen, who exercises broad, if covert, influence in the judiciary and media.

The affair, exposing a deep rift within the Turkish political establishment, has driven the lira to new lows and shaken investor confidence in a country whose stability has largely derived from Erdogan's strong grip on power.

But it is the government's reaction, seeking tighter control over the judiciary, police and even the internet, which risks doing the deepest long-term damage, not least to Turkey's ambitions to join the European Union and to its relations with Washington, already critical of its record on human rights.

Turkey's Halkbank denies wrongdoing in Iran deals

December 23, 2013
Source: Yahoo News

Istanbul (AFP) - Turkey's state-owned Halkbank, whose chief executive was arrested in connection with a sweeping graft investigation, said on Monday it complied with the law when doing business with sanctions-hit Iran. 

"Our bank's business transactions are regularly audited by relevant authorities," the bank said in a statement

.

"The financial intermediation that our bank offers with regard to trade activities with Iran have been conducted in accordance with regulations," it added. 

The statement comes after Halkbank chief executive Suleyman Aslan was charged Saturday with taking bribes, while Azerbaijani businessman Reza Zarrab was charged with forming a ring that bribed officials to help disguise illegal gold sales to Iran via Halkbank.

Police had also reportedly found $4.5 million in cash stored in shoe boxes in Aslan's home.

Twenty-four people have been charged so far in connection with the high-profile investigation including the sons of Interior Minister Muarrem Guler and Economy Minister Zafer Caglayan as well as several top business leaders. 

On Saturday, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan defended Halkbank which he claimed was targeted by international plotters. 

"We have raised the bank's market value to $25 billion. They are targeting this successful state bank," he said. "This bank is intimidating Turkey's enemies."

Halkbank has come under fire from some quarters in the United States for alleged illegal transactions to Iran.

The bank said it stopped transactions to Iran as of June 10 after the United States announced further sanctions against the Islamic republic. 

Several pro-government media outlets claimed over the weekend that US ambassador to Turkey Francis Ricciardone told some European Union ambassadors that Washington asked the bank to cut its ties with Iran -- the allegations vehemently denied by the ambassador. 

The reports however infuriated the prime minister who warned he may expel some foreign ambassadors over "provocative actions", in remarks considered a veiled threat to Ricciardone.

Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan said Sunday that Halkbank has lost $1.6 billion in market value since the scandal broke out and branded the investigation as an operation aimed at undermining Turkey's economic stability.

Turkey's Erdogan slams world's 'double standards' on Egypt

Jul 19, 2013
By Jonathon Burch
Source:Reuters

(Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan accused Western and Arab nations of "double standards" for failing to condemn the overthrow of former Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi, whose Muslim Brotherhood like Erdogan has Islamist roots.

Turkey has emerged as one of the fiercest international critics of what it has called an "unacceptable coup" after Egypt's powerful military shunted the country's elected leader from office earlier this month.

Although the United States has expressed concern at Mursi's removal and called for a swift return to democracy, as has the European Union, it has stopped short of calling it a coup, which might have led to sanctions.

Gulf Arab states, which see Egypt as a strategic ally against any threat from non-Arab Iran, celebrated his departure with palpable relief.

"Countries which embrace and care about democracy should not behave with double standards towards these kinds of events and should say something is wrong when it is wrong," Erdogan told Western, Arab and other ambassadors late on Thursday.

"Those who extol democracy when they meet with us, saying 'one must not compromise on democracy', we want to see their backbone," Erdogan told his guests at a dinner to break the Muslim Ramadan fast.

Erdogan asked why the world stayed silent over the at least 99 people who have died since Mursi was ousted, more than half of them when troops fired on Islamist protesters on July 8.

"Why aren't you speaking up? Come on, speak up against this. There's no point in being ambivalent," he told the diplomats seated around the room at party headquarters in Ankara.

"If you are not going to speak up here, where are you going you to speak?"

REGIONAL INFLUENCE

Erdogan was feted by adoring crowds in Arab capitals only two years ago when Turkey seemed set to expand its trade and influence across the region on the back of his support for the protesters of the Arab Spring.

Egyptians hailed the Turkish leader as a hero on Tahrir Square in 2011, when he was among the first world leaders to tell Hosni Mubarak his time was up.

But Erdogan's popularity at home and in the region took a dent after a crackdown on nationwide anti-government protests last month in which five people died and thousands were injured.

Egypt's new interim government has warned Ankara not to meddle in its internal affairs and last week summoned Turkey's ambassador to Cairo. Egypt's ambassador in Ankara was not present at Thursday's dinner.

Turkey's response to Egypt is at least partly shaped by its own history of having experienced three military coups since 1960, and the removal of its first Islamist government in 1997, events which Erdogan referred to in his speech.

It is a history not lost on Mursi's supporters.

"Because it has a history of coups, Turkey understands us better and does not want us to go through the same suffering that it has gone through," Abdul Mawgoud Dardery, a former MP from Mursi's Freedom & Justice Party, told Reuters this week.

"Erdogan is still a hero in Egypt and in the rest of the Arab world ... If Erdogan ran for election in Egypt he would most likely win the presidency."

(Additional reporting by Ayla Yackley; Editing by Nick Tattersall and Sonya Hepinstall)

Link:http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/19/us-egypt-protests-turkey-idUSBRE96I0NJ20130719

Turkey's Erdogan seeks to further curb army power

2 hours ago
by: Parisa Hafezi  
Reuters
 Source: Yahoo News

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's government, which faced a wave of street protests and riots this month, moved on Thursday to amend an article of the Armed Forces charter cited by generals in the past to justify coups as defense of public order.

Since he was first elected in 2002, Erdogan has radically cut back the power of a military that had toppled four governments in forty years. The last administration felled, in 1997, was led by an Islamist party to which Erdogan belonged.

Deputy prime minister Bekir Bozdag told reporters the government had submitted proposals to parliament to amend article 35 of the charter, promulgated after a 1960 coup that resulted in the hanging of a prime minister. Erdogan has cited that prime minister, Adnan Menderes, as a political model.

The article was later used as the basis for interventions in 1970 and in 1980, to end months of left-right streetfighting, as well as 1997 when the army saw a danger from political Islam.

The amendment would replace the declared duty to "protect and watch over the republic" - a reference that for many Turks would imply strictly enforcing a secular order - with a more limited obligation to defend "the Turkish homeland against foreign threats".

COUP ALLEGATIONS

Erdogan, who has won three elections and despite recent protests has no clear political rivals, denies accusations he seeks to overturn the 90-year-old secular order. But in speeches in recent weeks he has railed against what he sees as the oppression of pious Muslims under previous governments.

Opponents accuse him of becoming increasingly authoritarian.

Hundreds of top officers have been arrested in recent years as part of an investigation into alleged plots against Erdogan. One, codenamed 'Ergenekon' foresaw the engineering of street protests and killings opening the way for an army takeover.

Erdogan blamed this month's protests and rioting - the largest show of public defiance of his time in office - on a foreign-backed conspiracy involving market speculators, "terrorist" groups and looters.

The demonstrations drew in leftists, secularists, nationalists, professionals, unions and students after police used water cannon and tear gas in a heavy handed attempt to disperse an initial demonstration against the development of an Istanbul park.

Parliament will discuss the bill in October after its summer recess.

(Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Nick Tattersall and Ralph Boulton)

Turkey protests test Obama's ties with Erdogan

3 hrs ago
By JULIE PACE | Associated Press
Source: Yahoo News

WASHINGTON (AP) — Government crackdowns against protesters in Turkey could test the close ties between PresidentBarack Obama and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a strategically important U.S. ally in a tumultuous region.

The demonstrations in Turkey, now entering their second week, cropped up after Erdogan's visit to the White House last month, which highlighted a variety of issues on which the U.S. needs Turkey's help. They include quelling the violence in Syria, stabilizing Iraq and stemming Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Erdogan, known for his brash and stubborn leadership style, has responded to the public outcry by questioning the legitimacy of the protesters. In a series of increasingly belligerent speeches to supporters Sunday, the prime minister warned that his patience was wearing thin and said those who do not respect the government will pay.

Hundreds of police in riot gear briefly fired tear gas canisters and rubber bullets at protestors in Istanbul's central Taksim Square early Tuesday, forcing many protestors who had occupied the square into a nearby park. Some groups also clashed with police at one edge of the square, setting off fireworks, firebombs and throwing stones at a police water cannon.

The clash mirrored previous confrontations between Turkish police and protestors, which have also involved the use of tear gas and water cannons. Turkish authorities are trying halt demonstrations, which have spread to nearly 80 cities across the country.

James Jeffrey, who served as Obama's ambassador to Turkey until 2010, said that in private discussions among U.S. officials "there's some wincing at the statements by Erdogan."

But in public, the White House has carefully avoided criticizing the prime minister directly, though the U.S. has urged Turkish authorities to exercise restraint. There also have been no known conversations between Obama and his Turkish counterpart since the protests began.

"We continue to have serious concerns about the reports of excessive use of force by police and large numbers of injuries and damage to property, and welcome calls for these events to be investigated," White House press secretary Jay Carney said Monday. "We also continue to urge all parties to refrain from provoking violence." He did not mention Erdogan.

"This is always the quandary for the U.S. government," said Bulent Aliriza, a Turkey analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "When you get that close to an ally, you become very careful about criticizing them."

That's the pattern the U.S. fell into with former Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak, an autocrat who found favor with the U.S. by protecting American interests in the Middle East. The U.S. only turned on Mubarak after the Egyptian people launched mass protests against his government in 2011 as part of the Arab Spring push for democracy that swept through the region.

Despite the unrest in Turkey, Erdogan doesn't appear in danger of losing power. But the protests have exposed pent-up hostility among many Turks who fear Erdogan is backsliding on his early record of democratic reform and seeking to impose his religious views on the secular nation.

The anti-government rallies started after police launched a pre-dawn raid against a peaceful sit-in protesting plans to uproot trees in Istanbul's Taksim Square. Since then, tens of thousands of mostly secular Turks have joined the demonstrations, turning them into Turkey's biggest anti-government disturbances in years.

For the White House, Erdogan's handling of the challenge to his leadership could complicate Turkey's close but complex relationship with the U.S.

Since taking office, Obama has taken significant steps to point to Turkey as a model for other majority-Islamic nations pursuing democracy and ties with the West. Three months after winning the White House, Obama put Turkey on the itinerary for his first foreign tour as president, a 2009 trip that was aimed in part at resetting the U.S. relationship with the Muslim world. While touring Turkey alongside Erdogan, Obama cast the ties between their two countries as a "model partnership."

Since then, the two leaders have spoken frequently by phone, conferred on the sidelines of international summits and held two White House meetings, most recently in May.

Despite the robust relationship between the U.S. and Turkey, Erdogan has created headaches for Obama before. In 2010, Turkey broke with the U.S. and voted against United Nations sanctions against Iran over its disputed nuclear program. Erdogan also ratcheted up tensions with Israel earlier this year when he called Zionism "a crime against humanity."

The lengthy civil war in Syria has exposed perhaps the deepest rift between Erdogan and Obama. While both want Syrian President Bashar Assad out of power, the prime minister has become frustrated with Obama's reluctance to use military force to end the violence.

Erdogan pushed Obama during their recent talks to deepen U.S. involvement in Syria, but the Turkish leader received none of the assurances he sought.

Obama, however, has proven to have some measure of influence over his Turkish counterpart.

Earlier this year, Obama brokered a truce between Israel and Turkey, which had cut diplomatic ties following an Israeli attack on a Turkish aid flotilla bound for Gaza. Analysts say Erdogan would have been far less willing to accept an apology from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had Obama not also been on the line during the phone call.

Aliriza, the Turkey expert at CSIS, said Obama's success in restarting diplomatic relations between Turkey and Israel underscores the influence Obama could have now in shaping the prime minister's response to the protests.

"There is only one man in this world that Erdogan listens to, and that's Barack Obama," he said.