Turkish PM to form new government
July 9, 2015
The Turkish leader made the request during talks at the presidential palace in Ankara, more than a month after elections saw his Justice and Development Party (AKP) lose its parliamentary majority.
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (pictured above) vowed to kick start the process, saying he planned "to make the first round of coalition talks next week."
President Erdogan, whose hopes to form a more powerful US-like presidency were dashed by the recent elections, has been accused of postponing coalition talks as long as possible in order to cement his grip on power and even push for a snap election that could give the AKP back its lost majority.
Erdogan, who was prime minister for 11 years before becoming president in 2014, has been criticized for his increasingly authoritarian policies, which saw massive, nationwide protests against his rule in 2013.
With its majority gone, AKP cannot rule unless other parties join it in a coalition government, but Turkish parliamentary procedure dictates that coalition talks cannot begin until the president authorizes the prime minister to do so.
Davutoglu will then have 45 days to put the new administration together or call a new election.
It will be a difficult task for the Islamist-rooted AKP, whose most natural allies with the rightwing National Movement Party (MHP) - but the MHP's firm opposition to peace talks with insurgent Kurds could derail a hard-won peace process. Another possibility is to form a grand coalition with the leftist Republican People's Party (CHP), though that could prove problematic for AKP's devout Muslim supporters.
es/kms (AP, Reuters, AFP, dpa)