Leaders of Western Balkans countries hail election victory of Turkish President Erdogan

By Talha Ozturk

BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) – Leaders of countries of the Western Balkans on Sunday congratulated President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Turkish people over victory in the presidential election.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic expressed his and the Serbian people's hearty congratulations.

“I’m confident that you'll remain committed to your country's continued development and its citizens' well-being. In Serbia, we look forward to strengthening our relationship further, based on mutual respect and friendship,” he said on Twitter.

Vucic said that as a reliable and serious partner of Türkiye in the Western Balkans, Serbia remains determined to work with dedication towards further expanding and strengthening relations.

"For us, Turkey is an extremely important partner, not only in the field of economic and bilateral relations, but also on the international political scene,” he said. “I hope that in addition to the existing big projects, we will work together on new initiatives that will speed up the strong development of the entire region, but also bring people together and connect economies for the benefit of all our citizens.”

Zeljka Cvijanovic, chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, said in a message: ''I use this opportunity to express my belief that the Turkish people have chosen a path that includes economic prosperity, social well-being as well as regional stability.”

On social media, Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik hailed Erdogan's victory in the country's first-ever presidential runoff as historic.

"Voters again elected you as their leader! This decision of the voters is not important for the Republic of Turkiye only, but for the world! Congratulations," said Dodik, president of the Republika Srpska entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Kosovo’s President Vjosa Osmani also said on social media: ''As you continue to lead Türkiye towards new successes, I look forward to working together to build on our excellent cooperation.”

"May the partnership between Kosovo and Türkiye continue to grow stronger," he added in Turkish.

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama and Montenegro’s former President Milo Djukanovic also congratulated Erdogan.

Many people in the region gathered in the squares with Turkish flags and banners with Erdogan’s name and likeness to celebrate the unofficial election victory.

In the city of Novi Pazar, Serbia, hundreds of people organized celebrations and convoys of vehicles carrying Turkish flags.

With 75.42% of the votes counted, Erdogan is leading in the runoff election with 53.41%, while opposition candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu has 46.59%, according to Ahmet Yener, chairman of the Supreme Election Council (YSK).

On May 14, no candidate won the required 50% in the first round, triggering the presidential runoff, although Erdogan took the lead with 49.52%.​​​​​​ On that date his electoral alliance also won a majority in parliament.

Türkiye has longstanding relations with the Western Balkans region based on such factors as cultural affinity and deep-rooted historic ties.