Int’l dignitaries attend president’s inauguration ceremony

ANKARA 

Dignitaries and world leaders from across the globe assembled in the capital Ankara on June 3 to witness the inauguration of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan after he won a historic run-off election to extend his two-decade rule for another five years.

The ceremony, held at the Presidential Palace in the capital, saw the presence of 21 presidents and 13 prime ministers. Among the distinguished guests were NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt.

Many notable leaders attended the ceremony, including Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, Azerbaijan’s İlham Aliyev, Armenia’s Nikol Pashinyan, Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, Pakistan’s Shahbaz Sharif, Libya’s Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, Kazakhstan’s Kasim-Jomart Tokayev and Somalia’s Hasan Sheikh Mahmoud.

The event was further graced by the presence of representatives from international organizations, such as the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the Organization of Turkic States.

Nechirvan Barzani of Iraq’s Kurdish Regional Government, Vyacheslav Volodin of Russia’s State Duma, Ding Zhongli of China’s Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, Zeljka Cvijanovic of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Presidential Council, former German President Christian Wulff and former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder also attended the event.

The extensive guest list also featured numerous names from various countries. Turkish Cyprus’ Ersin Tatar, Bulgaria’s Rumen Radev, South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa, Montenegro’s Yakov Milatovic, Kosovo’s Vjosa Osmani and North Macedonia’s Stevo Pendarovski, all participated in the ceremony.

Expressing his gratitude, Erdoğan acknowledged each head of state individually in his speech and thanked them for their presence “on this historic day.”