Turkey expects solidarity from allies after coup attempt, Turkey’s foreign minister says

ANKARA

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Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu has said that Turkey expected solidarity from its allies after the July 15 failed coup attempt, believed to have been masterminded by the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ).

“As Turkey goes through this period, what we expect from our friends abroad is solidarity and understanding. For this, we certainly keep all channels open as always for constructive dialogue,” wrote Çavuşoğlu in an article published in Newsweek on Aug. 8, as he added that Turkey told its allies about U.S.-based Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen and “his ominous aims.” 

“We have kept telling our friends, partners and allies for long, about Fethullah Gülen and his ominous aims as manifested on the 15 July. Despite all counter efforts, his followers have over the years clandestinely infiltrated into state organs, not to mention their presence in [the] private sector and media. The foiled terrorist coup attempt has left, hopefully, no doubt about them,” he also wrote.

Thanking the resolve of the Turkish state “acting in unity with its people” against the heinous coup attempt, Çavuşoğlu noted that the democratic regime of Turkey was saved “at the cliff edge.”

“Turkey, as a founding member of the Council of Europe, bastion of democratic universal values and norms, along with human rights and the rule of law, and as a negotiating candidate country for the EU, has thankfully all the assets and maturity to resist such tragic ordeals. Yes, the Turkish democracy won a battle that night. Yet, there is also the war to win to fully finish this painful episode of our life,” he added.