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Turkey referendum: Trump congratulates Erdogan
Donald Trump has congratulated Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his victory in Sunday's referendum that gave him sweeping new powers. The US president's phone call contrasts with concern by European leaders who have pointed out how the result - 51.4% in favour of the changes - has exposed deep splits in Turkish society. President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko also congratulated Erdogan. International observers monitoring the Turkish referendum concluded in a preliminary report on Monday that the campaign and vote took place in a political environment where the “fundamental freedoms essential to a genuinely democratic process were curtailed”.
