Putin's hand after Erdogan's victory, how the Russian president intervened in the election in favor of his friend

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's victory in Sunday's presidential election appears to have also been a victory for his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin. Erdogan defeated Kemal Kilicdaroglu, head of the center-left Republican People's Party (CHP), winning his third five-year term since taking office in 2014. His opponent was just four percent behind him. This is the result that resident Vladimir Putin wanted, no wonder he was one of the first to congratulate the Turkish leader. Putin did what he could to favor Erdogan, supporting him including delaying a $600 million payment for Russian natural gas. Putin's relations with many world leaders have been strained since he launched his invasion of Ukraine last February. Turkey, however, has taken an important role in the conflict, often serving as a mediator between Kiev and Moscow. Erdogan himself has supported Ukraine, but has also maintained close diplomatic relations with Russia. Both countries straddle the Black Sea, so maintaining strong economic ties has remained a priority for both governments. In particular, Turkey's actions in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) are aligned with Russia's interests. Turkey prevented Sweden and Finland from joining NATO, which would expand the alliance, which Putin does not like at all. It remained unclear how Turkey's approach to diplomacy would have changed if Kilicdaroglu had won. During the campaign,