President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has marked the tenth anniversary of the July 15 defeated coup attempt with a defiant address to the Turkish parliament, declaring that Türkiye's courageous resistance had foiled a treacherous bid to impose an imperialist project on the country and warning that the forces behind it had not given up.
Drawing a parallel with Türkiye's war of independence a century ago, Erdogan said on Wednesday that the Grand National Assembly had once again proven its resolve against those who serve foreign powers.
"A century after defeating occupiers, the veteran parliament again stood firm against imperialism's proxies on July 15," he said, saluting lawmakers who held their ground under direct attack from coup forces.
Erdogan opened his address with a solemn tribute to those who lost their lives resisting the putsch.
"I pray for the souls of 253 of our martyrs who gave their lives for the sake of this nation and this homeland," he said.
He praised Turkish citizens for demonstrating to the world that they would never surrender to a coup.
FETO terrorist organisation
Erdogan also condemned the FETO terrorist organisation, responsible for orchestrating the coup attempt.
He warned that a decade after their failure, their operatives remained active and dangerous.
"Even after 10 years, those who failed on July 15 are still waiting for a chance to pursue their sinister aims," he said.
"FETO terrorists who sold their souls and dignity for a dollar continue to serve Türkiye's sworn enemies."
He cautioned against complacency, urging the people never to forget the nature of the threat.
"We must not forget that we face a mentality that exploits democracy, infiltrates institutions to gain power, and turns its weapons on its own people," Erdogan said.
He also accused FETO remnants of continuing to wage an information war against Türkiye, spreading disinformation to manipulate public perception, while proxy actors behind the coup attempt had used every opportunity to undermine the country.
Transformation
Erdogan framed the last decade as one of transformative national progress, directly attributing Türkiye's advances to the elimination of FETO's influence from state institutions.
"Türkiye's achievements over the past decade, from defence and economy to security and foreign policy, have been made possible by eliminating FETO," he declared.
Closing on a confident note, Erdogan declared that the vision FETO had sought to derail was now firmly on track and that nothing would stand in its way.
"Let there be no doubt: the Century of Türkiye, which FETO sought to obstruct, is now under way," he said. "No dark force will stop it."
