German Foreign Minister, Sigmar Gabriel, said on Saturday that Berlin should have been more supportive of Turkey during the July 15 coup attempt perpetrated by the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETÖ).
“After the coup attempt in Turkey, we had to express our solidarity with the Turkish government and the Turkish people more strongly. I say this with open heartedness,” said Sigmar Gabriel in a meeting with members of the Association of Foreign Journalists (VAP) in Berlin.
“Of course, we really were against the coup attempt and we were there with the elected government. But the reaction of the Turkish government shows that they were disappointed with us. This is a matter where I can say I wish we had a different attitude,” he added.
Turkey’s July 15 coup attempt left at least 249 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured. The attempt to overthrow the government began at around 10 p.m. local time (1900GMT) Friday and was thwarted by 8 p.m. Saturday.
FETÖ terrorists are led by U.S.-based Fetullah Gülen, who orchestrated Turkey's July 15 coup attempt, and is the mastermind behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police and judiciary.
Since the failed coup, operations have been ongoing in the military, police and judiciary as well as in state institutions across the country to arrest suspects with alleged links to FETÖ.
The terrorist group is also known for its network comprised of hundreds of schools around the world.
