Like the Balkan Wars before, this territorial loss resulted in a resurgence of Nationalism, elevating the power of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, a general who had become a national hero by defeating the British at Gallipoli in 1915. Though initially in support of the Tribunals, Atatürk quickly reversed his position when Armenia was granted independence. In retaliation, Kemal founded the Defense of the Rights of Eastern Anatola, a political party that was fiercely nationalistic. Tens of thousands of Turks flocked to Kemal’s cause seeking redemption by spurning foreign influence. Kemal and his forces quickly overthrew the Sultanate and, once in power, undermined the authority of the Tribunals.

In the summer of 1919, three quarters of the imprisoned CUP members were freed without any protest from the Allied administration overseeing the trials. The newly empowered Kemalist government then adopted The Nationalist Pact, an international decree demanding that all of Turkish Armenia be returned to them. Again, the international community acquiesced. The tides of international favor were changing and the writing was on the wall for Armenia.