Yesterday, on May 28, the second round of presidential elections was held in Turkey, and Recep Tayyip Erdogan won. What is the significance of the re-election of Erdogan, who has been ruling the country since 2014, for the Central Asian countries? Activists of the Uzbek community expressed their opinions about it.

According to political scientist Kamoliddin Rabbimov, Erdogan's stay in power is good news for Central Asian countries.

"For Central Asian countries, Erdogan's stay is good news. Because for our region, elections are only a legitimizing tool, not a power changer. That is, the elections should not change the government, but should "legitimize" the current government." The political scientist expressed his opinion that "the stay of our brother Erdogan in Turkey, whether by democratic means or another, is only "good" for the capitals of the region."

According to Kamoliddin Rabbimov, Erdogan's stay in power will accelerate the formation of "multipolarity" in world geopolitics.

"Putin and Xi should be very happy about Erdogan's stay. Both Qatar and Iran and partly Saudi Arabia. But according to the "rules of the game", both Washington and European capitals congratulated Erdogan on his victory. For Zelensky, Erdogan's stay is not a big problem. Erdogan and Kilichdaroglu were "good and better" for Zelensky. Erdogan is a proven "master of conflicts", he is neither a friend nor an enemy of Putin. It is difficult to say how much Khilichdaroglu will be able to deal with Putin and be comfortable with Ukraine even if he comes to power. Therefore, in my opinion, Erdogan is also a "good option" for Kyiv," - the expert added.

Political scientist Hamid Sadiq also said that Erdogan's stay in power will give a positive impetus to Central Asian countries.

"Turkey is one of the countries that can be a political model for us. Erdoğan's victory in this election will give a new positive impulse to the relations between Central Asian countries. Central Asian countries are natural allies of Turkey. It should not be forgotten that no matter how much Erdogan is called an authoritarian leader, he is giving other candidates the opportunity to show their strength. This is very important. The success of Turkey is that there is a healthy fight among the presidential candidates. Now Erdogan's attitude towards the Arab and Central Asian countries looks much better. This did not happen during Karimov's time," - says the political scientist.

Economist Otabek Bakirov analyzed what awaits the Turkish economy if Erdogan remains in power.

"Naturally, it would be inappropriate to expect big changes and reforms from Erdogan, who has been in power for 20 years and will become the owner of absolute power for at least another five years, as in the early 2000s. The politics that play with the whims of a different path and empire will become more bronzed, along with the politics and the economy.

The tools that have become the face of land economics, such as ancient interest policy, distribution of preferences to close friends, and construction of megaprojects, will continue. It is only a matter of days or months before the lira loses its value by 30-50%. The problem is whether it is recognized in the interbank market or reflected in the black market and several different exchange rates appear.

The collapse of the lira creates new challenges for Uzbek exports to Turkey, which have been shrinking in recent years. The real incomes of several hundred thousand of our labor migrants will decrease, which means that remittances will also decrease. But imports will become cheaper, which will slightly ease the burden of Uzbekistan's "dragon" duties. At the same time, the cheap lira facilitates the possibilities of buying a house and other properties in Turkey and reveals relative advantages," - said the economist.

Otabek Bakirov added that Erdogan's victory, from the perspective of pragmatic politics, has many positive aspects.

"The chairman is no less than Putin in not recognizing the generally accepted rules, and if necessary, he will teach a lesson. The presence of Erdogan in power will reduce the chances of encroachment on our sovereignty from the north. The integration of Turkic countries will not stop. If the process of entering the World Trade Organization is prolonged, our opportunities to establish a free trade zone with Turkey can be realized faster through the means of Erdogan. "Erdogan's open-faced policy towards migrants also works in our favor in diversifying foreign labor migration," - he noted.

Let's recall that on May 6, Erdogan said that if he wins the election, he will continue his previous policy towards Russia, the USA, and other countries. In his opinion, cooperation with all countries is beneficial for Turkey.

For information, in the May 14 election in Turkey, none of the presidential candidates could get more than 50% of the vote. In this regard, the second round of voting was officially held in the country. In the election, Erdogan won 52.14% of the votes.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been the President of Turkey since 2014. Before that, he was the Prime Minister for 11 years.