Kremlin ‘firmly’ rejects accusations of election interference in Turkey

Moscow has “firmly” rejected, Friday, May 12, the accusations of electoral interference in Türkiye. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s main rival for the May 14 presidential election has indeed accused the Kremlin of being behind fake images that have agitated the campaign. “We strongly reject these statements,” Kremlin spokesman told reporters. “We declare it officially: it cannot be any interference” Russian in Türkiye, he added.

He also praised the “Turkey’s very responsible, sovereign and well-considered position on a whole set of regional and international issues”a position that “pleases” in Moscow, he said. “We have repeatedly said and we insist that Russia does not interfere in the internal affairs, nor in the electoral processes of other states”assured the spokesman of the Kremlin.

Disparaging fake images

President Erdogan’s main rival for Sunday’s presidential election in Turkey, Kemal Kiliçdaroglu on Thursday accused Russia of resorting to “deep fakes” (digitally manipulated images). Another opposition candidate, Muharrem Ince, threw in the towel on Thursday, saying he too was the victim of a smear campaign with faked images showing him having an affair or driving luxury cars.

Having come to power in the early 2000s, Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin have strengthened their relations for almost a decade, particularly against a backdrop of tensions between their countries and the West. Despite diverging interests, they cooperate on several issues, such as Syria.