Istanbul - (AFP) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan responded Wednesday to Western criticism after the political ban imposed on the opposition mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, ahead of next year's elections.

Last week, a court sentenced Imamoglu to more than two years in prison and banned him from holding an official position for the same period for "insulting a public official" in 2019.

The case arose after the municipal elections, which were canceled and which Imamoglu won again after being re-run.

Imamoglu has emerged as one of the most capable opposition leaders to confront Erdogan in the presidential elections scheduled for next June.

The 52-year-old mayor will continue in office while the courts consider his appeal. But a senior official said Imamoglu would not be allowed to serve as president if he wins the election. After that, the official said, a second presidential election would have to be held.

Western countries condemned the ruling, led by the United States, whose foreign ministry said it was "deeply disappointed" while Germany described it as a "strong blow to democracy".

- 'Political manipulation' -
Erdogan told supporters of his ruling party that foreign powers were trying to exploit the issue to manipulate Turkish politics ahead of the vote. He asked them, "Are you looking for political engineers? Are you looking for foreigners who use an individual crime to manipulate politics in our country?"

After the conviction of the mayor of Istanbul, tens of thousands of people took to the streets of the city to show their support.

Some analysts said the ruling could galvanize the faltering campaigns of Turkey's opposition parties, who have yet to agree on who will challenge Erdogan next year.

Unusually, Erdogan declined to comment on the conviction for three days. He then distanced himself from the ruling and indicated that it could still be appealed.

Erdogan's recent comments suggest he will play the nationalist chord and align the opposition with foreign powers during the election campaign.