As Turkey faces a runoff election next week. president Recep Tayyip Erdogan slammed Joe Biden for calling him an “autocrat” in the 2020 presidential campaign.

What happened: Erdogan, in an interview with CNN on Friday, criticized the incumbent US President and said, “Would a dictator ever vote in a runoff?”

See also: Turkey’s Erdogan changes course after criticizing Team Biden: ‘Friends with America and Russia’

In comments to New York Times editors in 2020, Biden called Turkey’s president an “autocrat”, criticizing his policies towards the Kurds while pleading for support for the Turkish opposition. “I think we should take a very different approach to him now and make it clear that we support the opposition’s leadership,” Biden said.

Meanwhile, the Turkish president hailed his “special” and growing relationship with Russian President Wladimir Putin. “We are not at a point where we would impose sanctions on Russia like the West has done. We are not bound by Western sanctions,” Erdogan said.

See also: Turkish politician Erdogan says “America needs to be taught a lesson” after US envoy meets opposition presidential candidate

Why it matters: Relations between Turkey and the US remained tense led by President Biden on various fronts including political, military and diplomatic issues. Erdogan recently allegedly that “I know that Biden gave the order to overthrow Erdogan. All my people know that.”

A Second ballot for the Turkish leadership is scheduled for May 28 as Erdogan and his main opponent Kemal Kilicdaroğlu The majority threshold of 50% was not reached.

Continue reading: Biden supports ‘whoever wins’ in Turkey’s elections as Erdogan takes the lead