Erdogan announces his new cabinet after taking office of his new term

ISTANBUL, June 4 (DPA/EP) –

The President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, announced his new cabinet this Saturday after taking possession of his new mandate, which he has renewed almost entirely with the aim of “achieving Turkey’s Vision of the Century,” according to a presidential statement.

Fahrettin Koca, Minister of Health, and Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, Minister of Tourism, have been the only ones to keep their positions from the previous cabinet.

For his part, Mehmet Simsek, who had already been part of Erdogan’s previous cabinets, will be Finance Minister, and Hakan Fidan, head of Turkish intelligence since 2010, will hold the post of Foreign Minister.

Following the executive change in July 2018, Simsek was ousted from the cabinet, and since his departure, the Turkish lira has lost more than 75 percent of its power against the US dollar.

Erdogan’s choice to appoint the former intelligence chief and former cabinet chief to top security posts suggests the re-elected president will pursue a security-oriented policy in the coming years.

Turkish Army Chief of Staff Yasar Guler will become the new Defense Minister, while Cevdet Yilmaz, his former adviser, will become the new Vice President.

Mahinur Ozdemir Goktas, the only woman in the Government, has been appointed Minister of Family; Istanbul Governor Ali Yerlikaya will take over as Interior Minister.