Global Courant
An internationally respected former banker gets a top job in economics, a powerful intelligence chief is appointed Secretary of State.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has named former economics chief and internationally respected ex-banker Mehmet Simsek as finance and finance minister at the unveiling of his new cabinet.
Erdogan, who was sworn in for his third presidential term on Saturday, changed nearly all of his cabinet members except the health and culture ministers.
Simsek was highly regarded by investors when he was finance minister from 2009 to 2015 and deputy prime minister responsible for the economy until 2018, before stepping down ahead of a series of lira crashes that year.
His appointment could mark a departure from years of unorthodox economic policies under Erdogan, which included maintaining low interest rates despite high inflation and heavy state control of markets.
Simsek, a former Merrill Lynch economist, is known for opposing Erdogan’s unconventional policies.
Turkey is facing a cost-of-living crisis and inflation rose to 85 percent in October, before falling to 44 percent in May. The currency has lost more than 10 percent of its value against the dollar since the start of the year.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks alongside the new cabinet members at a press conference in Ankara, Turkey (Umit Bektas/Reuters)
Hakan Fidan, Erdogan’s intelligence chief and former soldier, was named as the new foreign minister to replace Mevlut Cavusoglu, who has held the role since 2014.
Fidan, one of Erdogan’s closest associates, has headed the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) since 2010 and before that he was an advisor to Erdogan in the Prime Minister’s office.
In 2012, Fidan was the subject of an investigation, which was subsequently overturned, following secret peace talks MIT had held with the outlawed armed group of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in Oslo.
Turkish Armed Forces Chief of General Staff Yasar Guler was announced as defense minister, replacing Hulusi Akar. The 69-year-old was the military chief during Turkey’s military incursions into Syria in 2019 and 2020, and also oversaw subsequent military operations there and in Iraq.
Erdogan also announced that Cevdet Yilmaz will be his vice president. Yilmaz previously served as Minister of Development, Deputy Chairman of Erdogan’s Adalet ve Kalkınma Party (Justice and Development Party, AK Party) Economic Affairs and Deputy Prime Minister in charge of Economy.
Yilmaz, 56, has been the chairman of the Planning and Budget Committee of the Turkish Parliament since November 2020.
Here is a full list of Erdogan’s new cabinet:
Vice President: Cevdet Yilmaz Foreign Minister: Hakan Fidan Finance and Finance Minister: Mehmet Simsek Defense Minister: Yasar Guler Interior Minister: Ali Yerlikaya Education Minister: Yusuf Tekin Justice Minister: Yilmaz Tunc Family and Social Affairs Minister : Mahinur Ozdemir Goktas Labor and Social Security Minister: Vedat Isikhan Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change: Mehmet Ozhaseki Minister of Energy and Natural Resources: Alparslan Bayraktar Minister of Youth and Sports: Osman Askin Bak Minister of Culture and Tourism: Mehmet Nuri Ersoy Minister of Health: Fahrettin Koca Minister of Industry and Technology: Mehmet Fatih Kacir Minister of Agriculture and Forestry: Ibrahim Yumakli Minister of Commerce: Omer Bolat Minister of Transport and Infrastructure: Abdulkadir Uraloglu
