Turkey averted instability in Europe post-coup bid: FM

By Diyar Guldogan and Satuk Bugra Kutlugun

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey prevented instability after the July 15 coup attempt, which could have affected Europe, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said Monday.

Speaking at a press conference with his Lithuanian counterpart Linas Linkevicius, Cavusoglu said: "Actually, by stopping the coup attempt, Turkish people prevented instability that could have affected Europe."

He said Turkey had always made a significant contribution to the European economy, its growth, stability and security. "[But] unfortunately, some European countries ignored this.

"Unfortunately, we see that they [European countries] did not understand the gravity of the coup attempt or they did not want to understand it," he added.

He blamed this lack of understanding as the reason why certain negative statements had been made against Turkey.

Cavusoglu appreciated Lithuania’s support in the aftermath of the coup bid, something which, he said, the Turkish government expected to see from the European Union as well.

Linkevicius became the first foreign minister among EU and NATO countries to visit Turkey Monday after the defeated coup, which left 240 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Turkey blames followers of Fetullah Gulen, who has lived in self-imposed exile in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania since 1999, and his FETO network for attempting to bring down the elected Turkish government.

According to the Lithuanian foreign minister, "We have to really rebuild a constructive dialogue, which was not present lately. We have to be more forward leaning and engaged to understand the situation better.

"So all those guilty, those who committed crime against the state and the democracy, they have to be prosecuted, have to be trialed in a fair way."

Linkevicius said Turkey was a key European partner, trade partner and NATO ally. Both countries faced common challenges that need to be addressed together, he added.

He said he trusted Turkish authorities would adhere to fundamentals of freedom and human rights. “It is very important and essential during these difficult times. We do trust our ally to do these in a fair way," he added.

- Crimean issue

Cavusoglu also said normalization of ties with Russia did not affect Turkey’s stance on Crimean-Tatar situation.

“We have always been in touch with Lithuania on this issue because there are Crimean-Tatars living in Lithuania,” he said.

Linkevicius said: "Lithuania was and will remain active in implementing the non-recognition policy of the annexation of Crimea. Especially, with regards to the human rights and local population. We did that with Turkey, and we will continue in the same way."

He said Lithuaina sees Russia's "military aggression" in Crimea and in eastern Ukraine as “blatant violation of international law.”

Turkey and Russia for years have had different policies on Ukraine. Along with many UN countries, including the U.S. and the EU, Turkey did not recognize the Russian annexation of Ukraine’s autonomous republic of Crimea in 2014.

- Fight against Daesh

Cavusoglu said Turkey played an "active role" in the fight against Daesh. He added the country would continue to support operations against Daesh.

"Turkey was always Daesh's first target," he said.

He said it was only "natural" for Daesh to target Turkey and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, adding Daesh did not represent Islam.

He also said Turkey deported about 4,000 people for terror links and barred 55,000 people from entering the country.

Turkish officials point to Daesh for Saturday's deadly blast that targeted a wedding ceremony in the southeastern Gaziantep province that left 54 people dead.