ISTANBUL
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has said the Justice and Development (AK) Party has no prerequisites for a coalition government.
"We have no prejudices or prerequisites. We are ready to discuss all the essential issues required for governance," Davutoglu said at an iftar event organized by the AK Party in Istanbul Sunday.
"Having said that, we feel that all other issues that are not relevant to the government, including the Presidency in particular, should be left out," he added.
The Turkish premier said he would discuss all options, suggestions and opinions with other party leaders in an “open-hearted manner".
"I hope that we can establish a new government at the earliest, and in a way that would satisfy everybody in the country. Our only purpose is to form this government through mutual understanding, and without wasting any time," he said.
Davutoglu will hold the first coalition discussion with the Republican People's Party (CHP) chairman Kemal Kilicdaroglu on Monday.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had asked Davutoglu to form a new government on July 9.
Davutoglu is next scheduled to meet the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli on Tuesday, and the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Co-Chairman, Selahattin Demirtas, and Co-Chairwoman Figen Yuksekdag on Wednesday as part of the first round of negotiations for a "government partnership".
"The second round of meetings will be held in accordance with the atmosphere following Eid al-Fitr," Davutoglu said on July 9, referring to post-Ramadan celebrations.
Davutoglu now has 45 days to form a government around the AK Party, which gained the largest share of parliamentary seats (258) in the June 7 general election.
Although the party came in first, it did not win enough seats (276 seats) to form a majority government, so it must attempt to forge a coalition with the three other parliamentary parties - the second-placed CHP (132 seats), third-placed MHP (80 seats) and fourth-placed HDP (80 seats) . Either the left-leaning CHP or the right-wing MHP are likely to be Davutoglu's preferred partners.
If he is unable to form a coalition, tradition dictates the president should offer the second-place party the chance to create an administration within the same 45-day period. If this does not succeed, the president must call a fresh election and appoint a prime minister within five days to form an interim government consisting of representatives from all four parties.
The new election would likely be held towards the end of November.
