Turkey ‘regrets’ Thai military takeover, no label of ‘coup’

ANKARA

A protester, left, is detained by a Thai soldier during an anti-coup demonstration in Bangkok, Thailand, Sunday, May 25, 2014. AP Photo

Turkey has expressed “regret” over the military overthrow of the Thai government on May 22, but conspicuously refrained from declaring the move a “coup.”

“Turkey, as a matter of principle, is opposed to the dismissal of governments that have come to power by popular vote, by non-democratic methods. In this context, we regret the decision of the Thai armed forces to suspend the Constitution and take control of the government,” the Foreign Ministry said in a written official statement released late May 24.

“Turkey has relations of close friendship and cooperation with Thailand, and we expect that Thailand will return to democracy, which has been interrupted, as soon as possible,” the ministry said, concluding the brief statement.

Thailand’s military overthrew the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra on May 22 after months of debilitating and at times violent confrontation between the populist government and the royalist establishment.

The military takeover drew swift international condemnation, with statements from the United States, European Union, France, Germany, Japan and Singapore, Thailand’s partner in the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), issued on the same day as the takeover occurred.