Davuto?lu 'stands behind' Army's denial of coup plans

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davuto?lu said he stood behind a March 31 announcement by the Turkish General Staff, which denied allegations that some members of the military were planning a coup, adding the statement was released "upon his permission."

"The statement by our Chief of Staff [Hulusi Akar] was issued upon my permission and I stand behind that announcement," Davuto?lu told a group of reporters from Turkish daily Habertürk. 

"I will never accept the Turkish Armed Forces [TSK] being presented as though it stands outside of our democratic system," he added, explaining that Gen. Hulusi Akar, Turkey's Chief of General Staff, consulted him prior to releasing the statement. 

The Turkish PM stressed his belief that the statement does not constitute a violation of democratic customs, underlining the "old Turkey" where the military exercised power over political institutions was "far away."

"Today, no one can think of exercising power over the legitimate democratic system through the Armed Forces. The TSK is at the service of the democratic government that came into power with the votes of the people and earned it legitimacy through the people," he said. 

Davuto?lu praised the devotion of the military to security operations against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) being carried out in the country's southeast, stating it successfully carried out all orders "word for word."

The prime minister also touched upon the alleged group inside the military linked to the Fethullah Gülen movement - dubbed the "parallel state" by the Justice and Development Party-led government - which some media outlets speculated was planning a coup d'état in Turkey. 

"In case there is a parallel formation [inside the...