War on Gulenists undermines Turkish diplomacy
Ankara has canceled the authorization of 51 honorary consuls as part of its war on the Gulen movement while President Recep Tayyip Erdogan presses African governments to shut down Gulenist-founded schools.
Bent on dismantling the “parallel state,” Ankara has embarked on a reckless campaign that threatens to undermine Turkey’s foreign relations. After corruption probes targeted Cabinet members in December 2013, it came as no surprise when the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government dismissed and reassigned thousands of police officers, prosecutors and judges in the course of a fierce war on the movement of cleric Fethullah Gulen. No one would have imagined, however, that Ankara would go so far as to dismiss dozens of honorary consuls in Turkey and mount a diplomatic offensive to force the closure of Gulenist-founded schools abroad.
Honorary consuls representing 51 countries in Turkey have seen their authorizations revoked. In remarks to reporters last week, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu offered the following explanation: “In light of information provided by the National Intelligence Organization, we decided not to renew the authorizations of certain countries’ honorary consuls in Turkey because those individuals belong to the parallel setup and work against Turkey abroad. To enjoy certain rights as an honorary consul and then go working against Turkey is something we cannot accept.”
Asked how Ankara would explain its decision to the countries in question, Cavusoglu said, “We cannot allow people working against Turkey, trying to destroy Turkey, seeking to smear Turkey’s image and spreading disinformation and slander about Turkey to be honorary consuls. It’s that simple.”
Mostly business people targeted
