Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan finally broke his silence Wednesday on the barrage of explosive allegations leveled by a fugitive organized crime boss, calling them a plot against Turkey and standing firmly behind his interior minister, who is in the eye of the storm. In so doing Erdogan showed that mounting speculation that his government was tottering and would be forced to let Suleyman Soylu go was squarely wrong.

Speaking before members of his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in the parliament, Erdogan said, “We will foil these games, these plots. No one should doubt that we will disrupt this devious scheme.”

He added, "We pursue members of criminal gangs wherever in the world they flee to. We will not let go of these criminals until we bring them back to our country and render them to justice.” Erdogan said any attack on him and the AKP was an attack on Turkey itself.

Since May 2, Sedat Peker, a notorious mobster with ties to nationalist politicians, has from his haven in the United Arab Emirates been posting videos laying bare the murky web of connections between organized crime, government officials, security forces, the business world and journalists, which remain deeply entrenched in Turkey despite Erdogan’s vows when the AKP rose to power in 2002 to rid the country of such rot. His theatrical delivery, lurching from Quranic verses to threats and profanities, has drawn millions of viewers. Soylu, whom Peker claims was until recently his ally, is the focus of Peker’s ire, with the crime boss vowing to destroy him. Soylu denies the claims.