Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan accuses West of supporting terrorism

Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan has accused the West of supporting terrorism and standing by coups, questioning Turkey’s relationship with the US and saying the “script” for an abortive putsch last month was “written abroad”.

In a combative speech at his palace in Ankara, Erdogan said charter schools in the US were the main source of income for the network of US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, who he says masterminded the bloody July 15 putsch.

“I’m calling on the United States: what kind of strategic partners are we, that you can still host someone whose extradition I have asked for?” Erdogan said in a speech to local representatives of multinational firms operating in Turkey.

“This coup attempt has actors inside Turkey, but its script was written outside. Unfortunately the West is supporting terrorism and stands by coup plotters,” he said in comments which were met with applause, and broadcast live.

Gulen, 75, who has lived in self-imposed exile in Pennsylvania since 1999, denies any involvement in the failed coup.

President Barack Obama has said Washington will only extradite him if Turkey provides evidence of wrongdoing.

The fallout from the abortive coup, in which more than 230 people were killed, has deepened a rift between Ankara and its Western allies.