Abdullah Gul, the foreign minister, had to withdraw his bid to replace President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, who was due to step down in May.

ECONOMIST: Turkey and its army

Ahmet Necdet Sezer, Turkey 's new president, overruled a military-inspired decree permitting the government to sack bureaucrats it considered not secular enough, or too pro-Kurdish.

ECONOMIST: Bomb terror

Ahmet Necdet Sezer, a judge who has just become president with the support of all the big political parties, has called for reform of the constitution.

ECONOMIST: A survey of Turkey

This followed Mr Erdogan's decision to nominate his foreign minister, Abdullah Gul, to succeed the president, Ahmet Necdet Sezer, who was set to step down in May.

ECONOMIST: The ruling party does surprisingly well

Mr Gul was first nominated for the presidency earlier this year but his candidacy was attacked by Turkey's secular establishment - in particular, the powerful military and outgoing President Ahmet Necdet Sezer.

BBC: NEWS | Europe | Turkey's Gul hints at presidency

The generals' ire was provoked when the prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, nominated his foreign minister, Abdullah Gul, to replace the strongly secular president, Ahmet Necdet Sezer, who was supposed to have stepped down in May.

ECONOMIST: The army refuses to retreat