Fourteen retired Turkish admirals were accused of attempting to violate the country’s constitutional order, most of them have already been arrested, Anadolu news agency reported.
Arrest warrants were issued by the Prosecutor General’s Office for 14 retired admirals of the fleet, 10 were detained, four are required to report to the police within three days. The accusations are more than serious, the main one is a threat to the national security of the state.
All the fault is an open letter, which was signed by more than 100 ex-servicemen of the Turkish Navy. In it, retired admirals warn of the risks that could arise from the Turkish government’s plans to withdraw from the Montreux Convention, which restricts the access of warships to the Black Sea.
Recall that the Montreux Convention, adopted in 1936, retains the right of all countries, in war or peacetime, to pass through the Bosphorus and Dardanelles. When Turkey participates in the war or if it considers that it is threatened by war, it can prohibit or allow the passage of any military courts. The Turkish government’s plans, approved last month, include the construction of the Istanbul Canal connecting the Black and Marmara Seas, which will duplicate the Bosphorus.
The admirals called in a letter to stop discussions on this issue, as well as to preserve the current Constitution, which Tayyip Recep Erdogan advocates for changing. The message that appeared on Sunday, which was signed by 103 retired military personnel, caused a negative reaction from officials at all levels and personally from Turkish President Erdogan. The arrests began today. The Ankara Prosecutor’s Office has launched a preliminary investigation.
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