Türkiye to grow stronger to prevent threat of another coup says president

The Turkish government will resolutely continue building a great, powerful Türkiye so the country does not face more calamities like the defeated coup attempt of July 15, 2016, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday.

The Turkish president's comments came during an event in Istanbul marking the sixth anniversary of the coup attempt that left hundreds dead and thousands of others wounded as the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) sought to wrest control of the country using its members that had infiltrated the Turkish military.

Türkiye will do its best not to go through another coup and face the threat of captivity, Erdogan said, adding that the resilience of the Turkish nation blocked the terror group's ill intentions.

Noting that Türkiye has improved its infrastructure in the fields of health, transportation, education, energy, industry, and sports over the past two decades, Erdogan vowed that his government would do its best to make Türkiye one of the world's top 10 economies.

FETO and its US-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup, which left 251 people dead and 2,734 injured.

Ankara also accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.

The attempt by FETO to overthrow the government began around 10 p.m. local time (1900GMT) on July 15, 2016, and was thwarted by 8 a.m. the next day.

Standing against the threat, the Turkish people courageously showed the world that they would not tolerate any attempt to thwart their will as expressed through their democratically elected government.

While the PKK terror group has been recognized as a terrorist organization by several countries, this was not the case for FETO and the YPG, Erdogan said.

Recently though, both were included as terror groups in NATO records for the first time after a recent summit of the alliance held in late June, added Erdogan, who said Ankara made its position clear by drawing its red lines during the talks.

In its more than 35-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK -- listed as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the US, and EU -- has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. Ankara accuses YPG of being PKK's Syrian branch.