More than 15 thousand people were arrested in Turkey after an attempted coup, including more than 10 thousand soldiers, media reported, citing the head of the Interior Ministry Efkan Ala. Recall that two weeks ago a group of rebels tried to carry out a coup, during which 246 people were killed, not counting putschists, and 2185 people were injured.
Experts have said that Turkey will be weakened in connection with the "purges", however the president of the Russia-Islamic World Center for Strategic Studies, Shamil Sultanov, believes that Ankara will only strengthen its position in the Middle East after the failed military coup.
"People say that Daesh became Ankara's puppet. This is absolutely wrong. In fact, Daesh is a threat to [President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan, who wants to position himself as a moderate Islamist, as a representative of a moderate Islamic project, which is of interest to both the West and the East, for the Chinese and for the entire world. Actually, if you look at the trends within Turkish society, there is a radicalization. And Erdogan was blamed for this radicalization six months ago. It is a lethal danger for Erdogan," he thinks.
According to him, "one of the tasks of the large-scale purges and 'MIT', the Turkish National Intelligence Organization, is not only to get rid of people suspected in coup attempts, but also of those who support Daesh. The purge will end in 2 to 2.5 months, and Erdogan's positions at regional level will strengthen greatly."
Speaking about the economic aspect of Ankara's strengthening, the expert recalled that between July 15th and 25th Persian Gulf countries invested about $5 billion in the Turkish economy. "It means they support Erdogan," he believes.
He also said that in this situation Russia has a unique opportunity: "We have what the Americans and the Chinese don't – we have good relationship with Iran. And right now we can achieve a very good relationship with Turkey. An important triangle is appearing in the shape of Ankara-Tehran-Moscow. This triangle can find a formula that will satisfy everyone. Will our diplomacy use it, will the Russian presidential administration use it? It is not yet known, but such an opportunity exists."
