Turkey to adopt new constitution in 2023: Erdogan

• 

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pledged Friday a reshuffle to the constitution in 2023 when the country celebrates a century since the republic's founding by Kemal Ataturk.

"We are determined to adopt a new constitution in time for the 100th anniversary of the Republic. It is the basic law of our people," he said.

The Turkish president said his country's constitution, which has been in place for four decades, was outdated and could not longer keep up with the times, suggesting that all political forces participate in the drafting process.

The last amendment to the Turkish constitution took place in 2017 following a referendum that expanded Erdogan's executive powers.

The reforms made in Turkey struck parliament's abilities, transforming the country into a presidential republic rather than a parliamentary one.

Erdogan brought together his cabinet on Monday and discussed various issues with his ministers, and this could have been one of them.

The Turkish cabinet discussed the UN-brokered grain deal between Russia and Ukraine, the Ukraine crisis, the bolstering of ties with the Israeli occupation, the alleged "provocations" by Greece in the Aegean Sea, the midterm elections in the United States, and the developments related to the US-Turkish deal with Washington, Turkish media said.

The UN-brokered deal, signed by Turkey, Russia, and Ukraine on July 22, will be expiring on November 19. It established a humanitarian maritime corridor for ships transporting food and fertilizer from the Ukrainian Black Sea ports.

Following years of strained relations between Turkey and the Israeli occupation, Prime Minister Yair Lapid announced in late August that his government would restore full diplomatic ties with Ankara.

Relations between Turkey and "Israel" deteriorated due to the occupation’s policies toward Palestinians, culminating in the withdrawal of both parties' ambassadors in 2018.

Erdogan was considered by some a vocal supporter of the Palestinian cause. However, he has been lately reaching out to "Israel", aiming to repair relations as Turkey's official inflation rate was at a 20-year-high in April, which posed a significant challenge to Erdogan's government.