Turkey has been pursuing a world-wide campaign to shut down schools linked to exiled Turkish cleric Fetullah Gulen. To date, around 1,000 private schools linked to his organisation have been closed. Fetullah Gulen, currently living in the U.S. is accused of masterminding the 15 July 2016 failed coup d’état in Turkey that left 250 people dead and 2,200 injured. Following the coup, the regime of Recep Tayyip Erdogan suspended or dismissed over 120,000 teachers, judges, police and civil servants; approximately 40,000 were formally arrested.

Mongolia has not been spared in the Turkish government’s attempt to close schools around the world. Currently, there are five Turkish schools operating in Mongolia. These are located in Darkhan-Uul, Orkhon and Bayan-Ulgii provinces; in the capital Ulaanbaatar there are two schools: Emphaty and ‘Mon-Turkey’.

Recently, Ankara has warned that certificates issued by Turkish schools operating in Mongolia will not be recognised. According to the Turkish ambassador in Ulaanbaatar, the certificates will be valid internationally, but not in Turkey.

The Turkish schools around the world are accused of providing financial support to Fethullah Gulen’s organization.