Istanbul, Turkey – The United States and European Union on Wednesday warned Turkey, a NATO member and close ally, to prevent its military from defying civilian leaders in a conflict between the Islamic-rooted government and the secular establishment.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s decision to back the candidacy of one of his closest allies as president underestimated the backlash. At the heart of the conflict was a fear that the ruling party would use control of both Parliament and the presidency to chip away at the separation of state and religion and curb secular freedoms such as women’s rights.
Erdogan’s party called for new elections Wednesday after the secular opposition boycotted a parliamentary vote last week on Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul’s candidacy and was backed by the Constitutional Court.
“The United States fully supports Turkish democracy and its constitutional processes, and that means that the election, the electoral system and the results of the electoral system and the results of the constitutional process have to be upheld,” Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said.
Asked whether the U.S. agreed with Europe’s call for the military to stay out of the dispute, Rice said: “Yes. The answer is yes, the U.S. would be in a similar position.”
