ANKARA, Aug 6: Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his defense minister objected to an army decision to expel 12 officers for indiscipline, including pro-Islamist activities, Turkish newspapers said Friday.

The army chief did not even consult the prime minister over the matter at the annual meeting of the Higher Military Council (YAS), which decides military promotions and retirements, according to newspapers.

But Erdogan denied the claim. The influential Turkish army, the self-styled guardian of the nation's strictly secular system, has often clashed with Erdogan's government, which has its roots in a banned religious party.

The general staff said on Thursday it had sacked 12 personnel on "disciplinary grounds" - a term it usually uses to describe involvement in pro-Islamist activities - at the end of the three-day annual YAS meeting.

Mr Erdogan and Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul signed the decision, but formally wrote down their reservations on the grounds that the officers cannot appeal their sacking, the Radikal daily reported. They had done the same last year.

Sabah newspaper reported that army chief General Hilmi Ozkok did not even ask for Erdogan's opinion before ordering an aide to write up the decisions after all generals in the military-dominated council had agreed to the expulsions.

"You are having the decision written down, but you did not ask for our opinion," Erdogan told Ozkok, according to Sabah. The general retorted: "Mr Prime Minister, we already know your opinion."

Asked whether he could deny or confirm the exchange, Gonul told Sabah: "I will not deny it... What happened at YAS should have stayed there. The person who told you this has violated YAS' principle of secrecy."

But Erdogan denied the incident. "There was no such dialogue between me and the chief of staff ... There cannot be any problem between the government and the general staff," Anatolia news agency quoted him as telling reporters.

The prime minister, however, did not comment on the formal annotations to the decision reportedly made by himself and Gonul. Even though it has disavowed its religious roots, Erdogan's Justice and Development Party is still viewed with suspicion by the army and by Turkey's secularist elite. -AFP