Turkey detains 10 retired admirals after statement triggers coup scare - Al-Monitor: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Diego Cupolo

Diego Cupolo

Apr 5, 2021

People sit along the Bosphorus shore at Karakoy port in Istanbul on Feb. 8, 2021 as the Galata bridge and the Suleymaniye mosque are seen in the background. — People sit along the Bosporus shore at Karakoy port in Istanbul on Feb. 8, 2021, as the Galata Bridge and the Suleymaniye Mosque are seen in the background. — OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images

ISTANBUL — Turkish police detained 10 retired navy admirals on April 5 after more than 100 former officers issued an open letter Ankara officials interpreted as a challenge to civilian government rule.

In a statement published midnight Saturday, the retired admirals expressed concern regarding an ongoing debate in Turkey over whether the government would pull out of the 1936 Montreux Convention, which regulates naval traffic in Istanbul’s Bosporus Strait and the Black Sea.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivers a speech following an evaluation meeting at the Presidential Complex in Ankara on April 5, 2021. Erdogan accused dozens of retired admirals of eyeing a "political coup" by attacking his plans for a canal linking the Black Sea to the Mediterranean.

Turkish court releases detained admirals

Al-Monitor Staff

Al-Monitor Staff

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivers a speech following an evaluation meeting at the Presidential Complex in Ankara on April 5, 2021.

Turkey’s talk of pulling out of the Montreux Convention part diversion, part 'Ataturk envy'

Amberin Zaman

Amberin Zaman

In London, reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivers a speech following an evaluation meeting at the Presidential Complex in Ankara on April 5, 2021. Erdogan accused dozens of retired admirals of eyeing a "political coup" by attacking his plans for a canal linking the Black Sea to the Mediterranean. Erdogan's fury was directed at a letter published by 104 former admirals over the weekend urging him to abide by the terms of the 1936 Montreux Convention.

Deciphering retired admirals’ open letter in Turkey

Metin Gurcan

Metin Gurcan

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivers a speech following an evaluation meeting at the Presidential Complex in Ankara on April 5, 2021. Erdogan accused dozens of retired admirals of eyeing a "political coup" by attacking his plans for a canal linking the Black Sea to the Mediterranean. His fury was directed at a letter published by 104 former admirals over the weekend urging him to abide by the terms of the 1936 Montreux Convention.

Who benefits if Erdogan scraps key maritime treaty?

Fehim Tastekin

Fehim Tastekin

In Paris, reporting on Turkish politics