Ankara - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday congratulated president-elect Barrack Obama and said that he hoped the next president of the United States will do more for international peace.

Speaking in Ankara, Erdogan said the United States had a "heavy burden to carry" and that he hoped Obama would do more to bring peace to the Middle East. He said that the election put an end to discussions that there was a black-white divide in US politics, noting that many white people voted for Obama.

Erdogan said Obama the United States and Turkey would continue to be strong strategic allies and that he hopes to meet the president-elect when he visits the United States later this month. (dpa)