Putin praised his “dear friend” Tayyip Erdogan, who won Turkey’s presidential election on Sunday.
“The election victory was a natural result of your selfless work as the head of the Republic of Turkey, clear evidence of the support of the Turkish people for your efforts to strengthen state sovereignty and conduct an independent foreign policy,” Putin told Erdogan, according to the Kremlin.
“We highly appreciate your personal contribution to the strengthening of friendly Russian-Turkish relations and mutually beneficial cooperation in various areas,” Putin added.
Putin said he valued collaborative projects like Rosatom’s Akkuyu nuclear power facility in Turkey and his proposed gas hub.
