Supporters of terrorism, enemies of mankind


Turkey is attempting to decode the multifaceted attack represented by the attempted coup on July 15. There was no single political party or structure in Turkey directly led by the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), the cult behind the attack, nor were they organically owned. Nonetheless, the group organized within political parties as well as the state, and tried to direct them. After the Dec. 17 and Dec. 25 process, the group strove to make up for their waning power in the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) by directly seizing control of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP). Their operation against the MHP was political preparation for the coup attempt on July 15.

Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmuş recently said: "Certainly this coup must have a political basis. This is indicated by Turkey's political power." One cannot disagree with Kurtulmuş. We can even suggest that such a far-reaching international attack must not only have a political "basis," it must also have a political "mastermind."

I must first note that if Turkey's political will, which draws strength from the nation, cannot fathom this fact, the attack initiated on July 15 will be a "softened" process and enable the coup schemers to achieve their goals over the long term, instead of a short time as was intended through the coup. If we can uncover the economic purposes intended by the political mastermind of the attack, we can also reveal their real political motives.

My previous column elaborated on the Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) which Turkey is currently establishing. Look at those who feel uneasy about the fund, saying that Turkey must not establish this, and those who try to keep the draft law establishing the fund from the Parliamentary Planning and Budget Commission, and consider their motives. You will see how the mastermind behind the coup works politically, and what they want to do to Turkey. We know that they want to turn Turkey into a country that is vulnerable to external financial attacks, that transfers funds to the outside and is dependent on external debt.

FETÖ did not draw their strength and operational capability from their organization within the Turkish state and society alone. The organization within Turkey was merely an important leverage. Despite appearances, this structure attempted to spread a secular political ideology and neoliberal economic ideology, and this ideology was the basis for the intertwined circles of the organization.

FETÖ's ideological structure and accompanying strategy became clear, especially after the Dec. 17 and Dec. 25 process. Through this process, FETÖ consolidated many authors and academics who looked liberal, but defended war and oppressive regimes with a neoconservative ideology and even promoted some to influential positions within the ruling party. Operationally and politically, this strategy did not solely target the AK Party, the real target was President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his political stance. The strategy suborned all opposition parties - including the Republican People's Party (CHP), the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and even the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) - to this end.

Indeed, the PKK terrorist organization's slogan directed at Erdoğan: "We will not let you be president" - is an "umbrella" slogan, one which points to a concrete political and economic target. The desperate politics and terror which escalated in the eastern provinces and led to suicide bomb attacks in big cities was certainly the continuation of the Dec. 17 and Dec. 25 process, which foreshadowed the coup attempt on July 15.

The PKK terrorist organization has now intensified bomb attacks in Turkey and indiscriminately conducts these kind of attacks in public spaces in the eastern provinces, killing defenseless civilians. These terrorist acts are the political continuation of the coup attempt on July 15. There are attempts to maintain the coup attempt through the abovementioned schemes against the Turkish economy. All this leads us to the "civilian" political structure behind the coup attempt. The economy stands out as a technical sphere and gains importance as the direct, but the most consistent mainstay and cohesive element of political conglomeration. I think that criticisms of Erdoğan - regarding interest rates, discussions of the independency of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) and objections to the redesigning of monetary and fiscal policies to stimulate growth - shed light on FETÖ's worldview and ideology. Despite being one of the most independently and efficiently functioning central banks in the world, the Central Bank of Turkey has been criticized as not being independent. Today, we can better understand the purpose behind such disinformation.

Last month, James Petras wrote quite a comprehensive article for Le Monde Diplomatique In which he explains the West's new hierarchy as four-layered and intertwined regional empires. The four layers are the U.S.-Western Europe, Asia Pacific, the Middle East-Africa and Latin America, which although separate, are led by the same hierarchy and have varied and differing internal dynamics. The crisis is right here.

Among these four empires, some countries are inclined to derail from the economic and political hierarchy - which is a justification for "intervention." Petras argues that a major problem for the U.S. is the risk that the European Union, Turkey, Israel and Saudi Arabia will create an "independent" initiative in the vast territory spanning from Eastern Europe to the Caucasus and including the Middle East and North Africa.

In recent years, Turkey has developed relations with the EU, Russia and other countries in the region, relations which transcend the traditional hierarchy. Pushing the EU to adopt a new understanding of union, developing relations with Russia and Israel in line with a new economic and political understanding, the idea that Turkey will include Saudi Arabia and Iran in these new formations, and discussions about making trade and investment agreements between Turkey, Russia and Iran on the basis of national currencies - these give us an idea about the impetus behind the coup attempt on July 15 and its background, as well as revealing the objective which guides the global power behind FETÖ.

Last but not least, the intelligence services and structures behind FETÖ and other terrorist organizations are not only enemies of Turkey, but also of their own countries and people. We know these intelligence services do not solely support FETÖ, but are also the supporters and founders of the DAESH terrorist group.