4um: Why Turkey Suspects Washington of Playing a Part in Failed Coup

Sputnik... The failed Turkish coup attempt has triggered a heated debate about its origins and alleged plotters. Canada-based author John Chuckman explains why he believes Washington could have winked and nodded to Turkish military rebels.

Outside Ataturk Airport In Istanbul People Stand On A Turkish Army Tank © REUTERS/ Reuters Kerry Blasts Turkey for Insinuating that Washington Plotted Coup of Erdogan The failed Turkish coup is surrounded by controversy. Following the coup attempt Ankara demanded that Washington extradite the exiled cleric Fethullah Gulen, an alleged mastermind behind the attacks against the Turkish government, who is living Pennsylvania.

Furthermore, during his live television appearance on news channel Haberturk, Labor and Social Security Minister Suleyman Soylu went even so far as to accuse the US of having its hand in the failed coup.

US Secretary of State John Kerry dismissed the accusations telling Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu during their phone call on July 16 that "public insinuations or claims about any role by the United States in the failed coup attempt are utterly false and harmful to [US-Turkish] bilateral relations."

However, it seems that the relationship between Turkey and the US continues to deteriorate.

Hurriyet Daily News reported Monday that Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim warned Washington that "Turkey may question its friendship with the US" if it refuses to extradite the exiled cleric.

US President Barack Obama (R) greets Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan prior to a meeting at the US Chief of Mission’s residence in Paris on December 1, 2015. © AFP 2016/ JIM WATSON Chill in US-Turkish Relations May Signal Ankara's Shift Toward Moscow It should be noted that the US-Turkish relations were strained even before Gulen became an apple of discord between Ankara and Washington.

In his interview on The John Batchelor Show Professor Stephen F. Cohen pointed to the fact that relations between Turkish President Erdogan and then UK Prime Minister David Cameron and US President Obama were particularly frosty during the Warsaw NATO Summit in early July.

Furthermore, according to Afshin Rattansi, a London-based author and journalist, it looked rather strange that no NATO member states lent a helping hand to Erdogan when the military coup erupted.

"It's astonishing that just a couple of years ago, we would have expected the NATO nations to have come to the aid of the Erdogan government which was elected in November. This time? Nothing," he stressed in his interview with RT. Supporters of Tukish President Tayyip Erdogan celebrate after soldiers involved in the coup surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey July 16, 2016 © REUTERS/ Yagiz Karahan Supporters of Tukish President Tayyip Erdogan celebrate after soldiers involved in the coup surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey July 16, 2016

Supporters of Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan shout slogans on the back of a truck during a pro-government demonstration on Taksim square in Istanbul, Turkey, July 16, 2016. © REUTERS/ Alkis Konstantinidis What's Behind Turkey Accusing Its NATO Ally of Links to Failed Coup These developments have prompted analysts to assume that the US could have really had a hand in the coup or allowed it to happen.

In his article for Consortiumnews.com a Canada-based author John Chuckman suggested that the US could have given a "wink and a nod (and of course, as always, some cash) to Turkish rebel forces" following the recent Russo-Turkish rapprochement.

"But that would not be the only reason for America supporting a coup. The truth is, from the American point of view, Erdogan's erratic behavior — shooting down a Russian war plane, firing artillery into Syria at American Kurdish allies, blackmailing Europe over large numbers of refugees in Turkish camps, and still other matters — over the last few years has added uncertainty and potential instability to a strategically important region," Chuckman writes.

On the other hand, the author continues if Washington was not involved in the plot the question arises: why it did not warn the Turkish president?

"After all, no one is better equipped for international communication interception than the US National Security Agency. If the United States were not involved, why didn't it warn Erdogan?" Chuckman asks.

Russian Aerospace Forces aircraft is prepared for departure at Khmeimim Air Base in Syria © Photo: Press service of the Russian Defense Ministry Turkey No Longer an Obstacle to the US-Russian Cooperation in Syria There is yet another argument in Chuckman's article. The author calls attention to the fact that Turkish jets engaged in the coup took off from the Incirlik Airbase, used by the US and NATO for airstrikes against Daesh.

"This airbase is Turkish, but has many American residents, including some high-level ones since there is not only a sizable air force stationed there but an estimated fifty thermonuclear bombs. The Turkish commander, Gen. Bekir Ercan Van, was in daily contact with the Americans and sought asylum in the United States before he was arrested by Turkey," the author points out.

Interestingly enough, in the wake of the coup the Turkish authorities started a search of the air base, while commercial power was cut off and the airspace above it closed.

However, there could be yet another explanation to NATO and the US not raising a finger to help Erdogan during the coup: some observers suggest that the failed coup could have been staged.

"There is a possibility that it could be a staged coup and it could be meant for further accusations [against Gulen and his followers]," exiled cleric Gulen said as quoted by the Guardian, sparking speculations about an alleged false flag operation in Turkey.

Still, these claims do not hold water, according to London-based political analyst Alexander Mercouris.

"The suggestion Erdogan stage-managed the coup himself is a fantastic one. On the contrary all the facts show that he and the other members of his government were utterly shocked by it, and were seriously frightened for their lives during it," Mercouris underscores providing an analysis of how the coup erupted in his article for The Duran.

"This is being misinterpreted as a sinister power-bid by Erdogan to tighten his grip on Turkey. Frankly it doesn't look like that to me at all. On the contrary it looks to me to bear all the hallmarks of something else: blind panic," he underscores, pointing to the fact that Erdogan and his supporters can no longer trust any part of Turkey's Deep State.

questfortruth This coup happened because of either one of two things. 1. Either Erdogan pulled it off to get rid of his adversaries so he can pivot towards Russia, or 2. Washington once again assembled all of it's most brilliant minds and FAILED to pull this off, like EVERYTHING ELSE they've done, and now Erdogan is pivoting towards Russia. I think that maybe Erdogan has seen the writing on the wall and figures that Turkey AND Saudi Arabia are on Washington's list for "regime change". Better to take the first punch.

Signs of tensions growing between the US and Turkey continue to emerge, prompting some to question whether Ankara has reviewed its geopolitical priorities and made a shift from Washington toward Moscow.

Due to its unique geostrategic position, Turkey has long been important to the US as a NATO ally and a "bridge" between the West and the Arab world.

However, clouds are gathering on the horizon of US-Turkish relations after Friday's coup attempt.

"US Secretary of State [John] Kerry has not been able to take a firm stance against the failed Gulenist coup attempt, drawing heavy criticism in Turkey. He made another controversial statement yesterday that Turkey's NATO membership could be discussed depending on Ankara's future actions," Turkish media outlet Daily Sabah reported Tuesday.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan (L) chats with German Chancellor Angela
Merkel (2nd R), U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (R) and Greek Prime Minister
Alexis Tsipras (2nd L) during the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, Turkey,
May 23, 2016

Merkel on the Horns of a Dilemma After Failed Coup Attempt in Turkey

Following the attempted coup, Ankara urged Washington to extradite cleric Fethullah Gulen, believed to be the mastermind behind the coup attempt. Gulen has been living in Pennsylvania since 1999.

Furthermore, Turkish Labor Minister Suleyman Soylu assumed that the US could have had a hand in the failed coup attempt, after Washington requested evidence to confirm Gulen's role in the uprising.

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim stated Monday that "Turkey may question its friendship with the US" should Ankara's demands to extradite the cleric not be met.

"We will be a little bit disappointed if our friends say 'show us the evidence' while there are members of this organization which is trying to destroy a state and a person who instructs it," Yildirim said, as quoted by Hurriyet Daily News.

Meanwhile, in response to a series of arrests targeting Turkish military and civil service personnel, Kerry and his European counterparts called upon Recep Tayyip Erdogan to respect the rule of law and democratic principles. They warned Ankara that its actions may contradict EU and NATO membership requirements.

"Any erosion of democracy in Turkey, a key US ally in the fight against the Islamic State (Daesh) and a North Atlantic Treaty Organization member, complicates some of the most critical tests facing President Barack Obama in his final months in office and his successor thereafter. Turkey's strategic location and Western ties have made it a cornerstone of US strategy against the Islamic State as well as efforts to resolve the Syrian conflict and stem the flow of migrants to Europe," Carol E. Lee of the Wall Street Journal wrote Sunday.

Policemen stand atop military armored vehicles after troops involved in the
coup surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey July 16, 2016.

Over 9,300 People Under Investigation After Turkey Military Coup Attempt

"Concerns have been building for some time in the White House and on Capitol Hill about Mr. Erdogan's intensifying crackdown on dissent… Uncertainty about Turkey's direction comes on top of a host of crises Mr. Obama's successor was already set to inherit in the Middle East and North Africa," Lee underscored.

In his interview with Russia's online newspaper Izvestia.ru, Stanislav Tarasov, Director of the Information-Analytical Center "The Middle East — the Caucasus", suggested that the request to extradite Gulen and the arrest of two pilots involved in shooting down the Russian Su-24 back in November 2015 in Syria signals Ankara's intention to distance itself from the US and become closer with Russia.

"Recep Tayyip Erdogan is using Gulen to cool its relationship with Washington. By doing this, he is trying to strengthen ties with Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan and [he] is openly blackmailing the West. The problem is that it would be very hard for Turkey to break its dependence on the US, the EU and NATO since the ties [between Turkey and these entities] are very strong. In addition, in response to the Turkish leader's bid for independence, the West can impose sanctions on Turkey, dealing a blow to the country's economy, or to play the Kurdish card, using the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). That means [Erdogan] may face a serious geopolitical challenge," Tarasov told Izvestia.ru

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad (R) and Turkish President Erdogan Recep
Tayyip Erdogan (File)

Turkey Begins Shifting Position on Syria, Faces Coup Attempt…Coincidence?

There are signs showing that Erdogan is indeed seeking closer cooperation with Russia and Iran. After apologizing for the death of the Russian pilot shot down by the Turkish F-16 jet, Erdogan continues to build bridges with Moscow.

During his recent phone call with Iran's President Hassan Rouhani on Tuesday, Erdogan vowed his commitment to work with Tehran and Moscow to settle regional crises.

"President Erdogan thanked President Rouhani for his phone call and said everything is in a normal state at present. He said the Turkish nation will pursue its goals in even a more determined manner now. He said his country is firmly willing to work with Iran and Russia to settle regional crises and restore peace and stability to the region," the Iranian media outlet IRNA reported Tuesday.

On Wednesday Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov revealed that a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will take place in the first 10 days of August.

"A meeting between Putin and Erdogan is currently being prepared and elaborated via diplomatic channels. We agreed that this meeting would take place in the first 10 days of August, it will take place in Russia; the city and the exact date are still being clarified," Peskov told reporters.

U.S. Constitution - Article IV, Section 4: NO BORDERS + NO LAWS = NO COUNTRY

Even stronger, I expect, is the desire of Turks in general to associate with the "good life" in America and its universal English language.