MHP welcomes AKP invitation but sustains objection to interim or election government

ANKARA

DHA photo

Shortly after Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said a fresh election now appeared to be the only option after last-ditch negotiations between his Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Republican People’s Party (CHP) yielded no deal, he asked for an appointment with Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli, who accepted the invitation but made clear they don’t consider being part of an interim government or supporting a minority government.

“The Nationalist Movement Party is open to meeting with the AKP, with the previous conditions reserved and final,” Bahçeli said in a written statement released late Aug. 13.    
 
 The MHP leader added they were still not open to a minority or election government – a transitional government ahead of snap elections.

The MHP was open to meeting with the AKP but holding its previous preconditions, he stated, adding before that meeting his party wanted to see Davutoğlu turn his back on “manipulations” by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The CHP and the AKP disappointed the expectations of the nation, Bahçeli said. 

The prime minister “intentionally played for time” in coalition talks, Bahçeli said. He stressed nobody should expect the MHP to show indulgence or support to carry their political agenda or “insidious account” into effect.

Davutoğlu has until Aug. 23 to find a junior coalition partner or Erdoğan, who founded the AKP, could call a snap election.

In the current set of circumstances, Davutoğlu hinted at snap elections. If parliament makes the decision for a new election, then the Supreme Election Board can cut this 90-day period by as much as half.

The MHP has said it does not favor a coalition with the ruling party, but had earlier implied it could support a short-lived minority AKP government as long as it leads to a quick election.