Speaking at the panel titled “10th Anniversary of July 15: Victory of Democracy,” organised by the Presidency’s Directorate of Communications, the 27th Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye, İsmail Kahraman, stated that “The scripts and directors of coups have always come from abroad, while the actors have always been from within the country.”
Kahraman said that 15 July was the 17th coup attempt in Türkiye’s history. He noted that, unlike the previous sixteen coups, Parliament convened on the night of 15 July, making it an exceptional case. He said: “In our history, the military seized power three times: in the coups of 1960, 1971, and 1980. However, the coup plotters failed in all of them because they were unable to carry out their plans. The scripts and directors of coups have always come from abroad, while the actors have always been from within the country.”
Kahraman argued that imperial powers neither want the countries under their influence to collapse nor to become too strong, as they seek to keep them dependent. Referring to former Prime Minister Adnan Menderes, he said: “Adnan Menderes won three elections between 1950 and 1960. During that period, Türkiye made progress in every field. Later, the well-known process occurred: smear them, slander them, discredit them, neutralise them, and even eliminate them.”
Kahraman stated that the 15 July events had cost Türkiye 350 billion dollars in material losses, while the moral cost was even greater. He concluded: “The military is a venerable institution. Just as there can be no nation without a state, there can be no state without an army.”
