NATO chief congratulates Erdoğan on election victory

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Monday congratulated Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on his victory in Sunday presidential and parliamentary polls.

"I will congratulate President Erdoğan on his re-election as president. I will also congratulate the Turkish people with the high-turnout in the elections," Stoltenberg told reporters, ahead of a meeting with EU defense ministers in Luxembourg.

He underlined Turkey’s great importance for the 29-member alliance.

"Turkey is a key ally for NATO for many reasons, not least because of its strategic geographic location, bordering Russia in the Black Sea but also Iraq and Syria to the south," he said.

"And Turkey has been very important in the fight against Daesh, against terrorism," he added.

Erdoğan won an absolute majority in the presidential election with 52.5 percent of the vote on Sunday, according to the Supreme Election Council.

In Sunday’s parliamentary polls, the People's Alliance -- a coalition of Erdoğan's Justice and Development (AK) Party and the Nationalist Movement Party -- won 53.6 percent of the vote, with 99.9 percent of the ballot boxes opened.