Turkey opposes all type of coups, Erdoğan says

ISTANBUL

Turkey opposes all types of coup attempts, said President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan regarding the attempted military takeover in Armenia against Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian.

“We are against all types of coups. We simply cannot accept coup attempts,” Erdoğan told reporters in a brief news conference following Friday prayers in Istanbul.

He continued by saying that the Armenian military’s attempt is “unacceptable,” adding that the Armenian people should have the final say if the existing administration needs to be changed.

“They need to leave this decision to the Armenian people’s will,” Erdoğan added.

Pashinyan defied calls to resign and accused the military of an attempted coup on Feb. 25, as divisions over his handling of last year’s war with Azerbaijan brought thousands to the streets.

Hours after the general staff of Armenia’s military made a shock call for the government to step down, Pashinyan rallied some 20,000 supporters in the centre of the capital Yerevan against what he said was an attempt to oust him.

The opposition gathered some 10,000 of its own supporters not far away, then began putting up tents and building barricades outside parliament as it vowed to hold round-the-clock demonstrations.