Recep Tayyip Erdogan takes oath of office as Türkiye's president

ANKARA

Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday took the oath of office to become Türkiye's president in Ankara, the nation’s capital.

Following the swearing-in ceremony at parliament, Erdogan visited Anitkabir, the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Republic of Türkiye.

Erdogan wrote in the mausoleum’s memorial book that the elections, which saw the presidential government system get a "vote of confidence,” opened the doors to a new era for Türkiye.

"For the next five years, we will continue to work heartily to realize our vision of the Century of Türkiye,” he added, referring to the length of his term, and the term of parliament, where his party and its allies have a majority of seats.

Erdogan also vowed to continue to protect the eternal fellowship of the nation, to grow and glorify the state.

High-level participation

Later, the presidential complex will host an inauguration ceremony attended by high-level officials from 81 countries, including 50 heads of state, 13 prime ministers, parliamentary, and ministerial-level officials, and representatives of international organizations, including NATO, the Organization of Turkic States, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

Among the attendees will be Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus President Ersin Tatar, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

Later, Erdogan will host his guests at a dinner at the Cankaya Palace.

The Turkish president will also announce the new Cabinet late Saturday.

Türkiye went to the polls on May 28 for a presidential runoff after no candidate secured more than 50% of the vote needed for an outright victory in the first round on May 14.

Erdogan won the race with 52.18% of the vote, while opposition candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu got 47.82%, according to official results.