ANKARA, Sept 5: Turkey’s powerful army leadership stayed away from Abdullah Gul’s first reception as president on Wednesday in a move widely viewed as a snub to the ex-Islamist whose election the generals had opposed.

The office of the president, who is commander-in-chief of the armed forces, played down the no-show, saying the generals had indicated they had other pressing engagements.

“The information that the chief of the General Staff and the forces’ commanders will be outside Ankara for previously planned military activities was given to the President on Aug 30, actually before this invitation was planned,” Gul’s office said in a statement. The reception was attended by ministers, lawmakers, judges and diplomats. Newspapers said a lower ranking army officer would represent the armed forces at the event. The staunchly secularist main opposition Republican People’s Party boycotted the event.

The head of the military General Staff, Gene Yasar Buyukanit, and other top generals also stayed away from Gul’s swearing-in ceremony in parliament last week, an unprecedented move, and failed to greet the president according to protocol at a military ceremony.

The military opposed Gul becoming head of state and commander-in-chief of the armed forces because of his Islamist past and the fact his wife wears the Muslim headscarf. The generals, along with the rest of Turkey’s secular elite, fear Gul and his ruling centre-right AK Party want to undermine Turkey’s strict separation of state and religion.

Both Gul and the AK Party, which won re-election in July polls, deny any Islamist agenda. As foreign minister in the previous AK Party administration, Gul championed liberal reforms needed for Turkey to join the European Union.

Following criticism from the media Buyukanit last week tried to play down accusations he was giving Gul the cold shoulder. He said “one must not ascribe meaning to these things”.

The top commanders plan to inspect army posts in various parts of the Nato-member country this week, media reported.—Reuters