Armée Turque/Turkish Armed Forces/Türk Silahlı Kuvvetleri

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Baku, Ankara Start Joint Military Exercises in Turkey




BAKU (Sputnik) – Baku and Ankara are holding joint military drills in Turkey, the Azerbaijan Defense Ministry said Monday.
"According to the military plan of bilateral cooperation, Azerbaijan and Turkey launched the ISIK-2016 military drills," a  press release from the ministry reads.

According to the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry, three Mil Mi-17 military transport helicopters and three Mil Mi-35 attack helicopters left Azerbaijan for a Turkish military base in the central city of Konya.

The exercises, that according to media reports will reportedly involve troops from Hungary, Romania, Saudi Arabia and Northern Cyprus, are due to last until June 30.


http://sputniknews.com/world/20160620/1041618122/turkey-azerbaijan-joint-military-exercises.html

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Turkey Launches ‘Local and National’ Warship
(Source: Anadolu Agency; published June 19, 2016)
ISTANBUL --- President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reiterated Turkey’s goal of self-sufficiency in defense as he launched a new warship on June 18.

Speaking at the launch of the TCG Burgazada, an indigenously produced corvette, at the Istanbul naval shipyard, Erdoğan said Turkey would soon “be in a position to make our own aircraft carriers. Turkey cannot stall in its defense industry and military issues because of our strategic geographical location.”

The president previously vowed that Turkey’s defense industry will be self-sufficient by 2023, the centenary of the declaration of the republic.

Burgazada is the third Ada-class corvette produced under the MILGEM project. The first was the Heybeliada, launched in 2008.

The ships, which are named after the Princes’ Islands off Istanbul, are designed for search and rescue, patrol and anti-submarine warfare duties. They are armed with a 76-millimeter gun, missiles and torpedoes and carry a Seahawk helicopter.

The ships have a displacement of 2,400 tons, a maximum speed of more than 29 knots (33 miles an hour) and a range of 3,500 nautical miles.

Erdoğan performed a “welding ceremony” on the TCG Kınalıada, another MILGEM corvette that is due to be completed in May next year.

Defense Minister Fikri Işık said Turkey was among the top 10 nations in military ship production.

“Turkey’s domestic production rate in the defense industry increased to 60 percent from 24 percent,” he said, adding that reducing dependence on foreign arms imports is a key goal of the Turkish defense industry.

Also present at the ceremony, Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım said the government had invested $30 billion in the defense industry over the last 14 years.

“Turkey is in a circle of fire and many oppressed nations are waiting for our support. So we have to improve our defense and deterrence capability, using local and national resources,” Yıldırım said.




http://www.defense-aerospace.com/article-view/release/174839/turkey-launches-corvette%2C-mulls-aircraft-carrier.html

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Turkish Military to Buy Six General-Purpose Aircraft
Burak Ege Bekdil, Defense News 4:22 p.m. EDT June 22, 2016


ANKARA—Turkey’s defense procurement bureau, the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries (SSM in its Turkish acronym), has launched an international competition for the acquisition of a batch of six general-purpose aircraft.

SSM on June 21 released a Request for Proposal (RfP) which officially initiated the bidding process.

SSM said that potential bidders should reply to its Aircraft Department and Integration Projects Group Directorate to obtain the terms of the RfP no later than 15:00 hours local time on Aug. 19. The office warned that those producers that have not purchased the solicitation document will not be allowed to bid.

The procurement office defined the planned mission of the general-purpose aircraft as “transporting personnel and cargo and airdrop.” The planes will be operated by the Turkish Air Force.

Procurement officials say they expect to see a race involving several international manufacturers.

“The planned aircraft should have features similar to a CASA-295,” one official said.

He said that the selected manufacturer will be expected to subcontract as much work as possible to Turkey’s local industry.

Aerospace industry sources say Tusas Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) would likely play a primary role as likely local prime contractor.

They say potential bidders will include manufacturers from the United States, Europe, Ukraine and China.

The program will cost the Turkish government anywhere between $100 million and $150 million, sources say.



http://www.defensenews.com/story/defense/2016/06/22/turkish-military-buy-six-general-purpose-aircraft/86235792/

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Otokar signs contract for the delivery of new Cobra II armoured vehicles
Jun 23, 2016



The Otokar Otomotiv ve Savunma Sanayi A.Ş confirmed that a contract has now been signed between the Turkish government for supply an unspecified number of new Cobra II armoured vehicle to the Turkish military and internal security forces.

Otokar said the €106,1 million contract involves the sale of its Cobra II tactical wheeled armored vehicles, the company announced in a press release.

Vehicle deliveries of the starting end of the year, is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2017.

Cobra II which is developed over existing Cobra Vehicle is a modular platform with superior technical and tactical characteristics. Besides outstanding mobility capability and 9 crew carrying capacity, the vehicle provides protection, firepower and mission equipment for users at different types of missions.

The vehicle provides an outmatched performance in a wide range of challenging terrains and climatic conditions.




http://defence-blog.com/army/otokar-signs-contract-for-the-delivery-of-new-cobra-ii-armoured-vehicles.html

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FNSS to supply anti-tank vehicles to Turkish Land Forces
Jun 30, 201




The Turkish MoD Undersecretariat for Defense Industries Signs the Contract for the Anti-Tank Vehicle Project with FNSS

Contract negotiations held with FNSS Savunma Sistemleri A.Ş. in relation to the Anti-Tank VehicleProject, which were initiated by the Defense Industry Executive Committee’s decision taken on March 9, 2016, have recently been concluded, and the project contract was officially signed on June 27, 2016, at a ceremony held in the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries.

The project will involve the integration of anti-tank missiles within the Turkish Land Forces inventory on armored vehicles equipped with anti-tank turrets developed specifically for the project. A total of 260 ea Anti-Tank Vehicleswill be procured within the scope of the project, including both tracked and wheeled vehicles. The anti-tank guided missile system turrets will be developed with modern Fire and Command-Control capabilities. In addition to their ready-to-fire anti-tank guided missiles each turret will be equipped with a 7.62 machine gun.

FNSS plans to use the lightest member of the KAPLAN vehicle family as the platform for the tracked type vehicle of the Anti-Tank Vehicles project, while considering the PARS 4×4 as the basis for the project’s wheeled type anti-tank vehicle.

In addition to having ballistic and mine protection, the amphibious tracked and wheeled Anti-Tank Vehicleswill be capable of conducting joint operations with armored units, and have a modular mechanical and electronic infrastructure that enables rapid adaptation of future potential requirements.

Within the scope of this project; Design, development and prototype qualification processes will be completed in 2018; and in the following two-year period, serial production of 260 each Anti-Tank vehicles shall be completed and delivered to Turkish Land Forces.





http://defence-blog.com/army/fnss-to-supply-anti-tank-vehicles-to-turkey.html

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La Turquie se propose de coopérer avec Moscou pour lutter contre l’État islamiquePosté dans Diplomatie, Moyen-Orient par Laurent Lagneau Le 05-07-2016



Une semaine après les excuses adressées par le président turc, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, à son homologue russe pour l’affaire du Su-24 Fencer abattu en novembre par l’aviation turque, Ankara a proposé à Moscou une coopération dans la lutte contre l’État islamique (EI ou Daesh).

« Nous coopérons avec tous ceux qui combattent Daesh. C’est ce que nous faisons depuis un certain temps et nous avons ouvert la base aérienne d’Incirlik à ceux qui veulent activement participer à la lutte contre Daesh », a déclaré Mevlut Cavusoglu, le ministre turc des Affaires étrangères, lors d’un entretien diffusé le 3 juillet par la chaîne de télévision TRT.

« Pourquoi ne pas coopérer avec la Russie suivant les mêmes termes ? » a encore demandé le ministre. « Daesh est notre ennemi commun et nous devons combattre cet ennemi », a-t-il continué.

L’on aurait pu voir dans les propos de M. Cavusoglu une invitation adressée à la Russie pour utiliser la base d’Incirlik, où sont déployés des avions américains, britanniques et allemands engagés dans la coalition anti-EI dirigée par les États-Unis. En réalité, il n’en est rien, comme il l’a précisé le lendemain.

« Nous avons dit que nous pourrions coopérer avec la Russie pour combattre Daesh à l’avenir. Je n’ai jamais fait de commentaires concernant la venue d’avions russes sur la base aérienne d’Incirlik », a en effet affirmé le ministre turc.

La Turquie étant membre de l’Otan, il aurait été étonnant de voir la base d’Incirlik accueillir des avions de combat russes. Cela étant, la Russie, qui dispose déjà de facilités militaires en Syrie, n’en aurait pas forcément besoin.

Quoi qu’il en soit, la proposition turque a de quoi surprendre dans la mesure où Ankara appuie des groupes hostiles à Bachar el-Assad, lequel est soutenu par Moscou. En outre, la Turquie voit d’un très mauvais oeil les avancées, dans le nord de la Syrie, des milices kurdes syriennes, proches alliées du PKK, le mouvement indépendantiste kurde.

Cela étant, pour le Kremlin, il s’agit-là d’une « déclaration importante qui doit être examinée d’un point de vue militaire et politique », même si, à ce stade, aucun contact avec la Turquie n’a été établi avec les autorités turques sur cette question. Son porte-parole, Dmitri Peskov, a estimé que l’attentat meutrier commis le 28 juin contre l’aéroport d’Istanbul (41 tués) et attribué à Daesh confirmait que l’échange de renseignements entre Moscou et Ankara était « crucial » pour lutter contre le terrorisme.



http://www.opex360.com/2016/07/05/la-turquie-se-propose-de-cooperer-avec-moscou-pour-lutter-letat-islamique/

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Un hélicoptère militaire turc avec à son bord 11 à 14 militaires s'est écrasé mardi pour une raison encore inconnue dans la province de Giresun, dans le nord-est de la Turquie, ont rapporté les médias locaux. L'hélicoptère s'est écrasé dans une région montagneuse de cette province située sur la mer Noire où les conditions météorologiques étaient peu favorables, a indiqué la chaîne d'information CNN-Türk.

En outre des militaires, dont un général de brigade, des civils et des enfants, les familles de militaires, se trouvaient dans le Sikorsky S-70, selon la chaîne qui n'a pas précisé le bilan des victimes. On ignore encore les circonstances exactes de ce crash.
leparisien.fr

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New Multinational Cooperation Initiative Launched To Respond To One Of NATO’s Growing Capability Priorities
(Source: North Atlantic Treaty Organization; issued July 9, 2016)
Poland and Turkey signed today a Letter of Intent for multinational cooperation in the area of Airborne Electronic Attack – Escort Jamming. Emerging operational requirements have created an increased demand for this capability area.

Preparing for the NATO Summit in Warsaw

The focus of the Letter of Intent is to investigate specific cooperation opportunities to protect Allied air assets through jamming. Multinational cooperation is an obvious choice in this area due to high development costs, low acquisition numbers, and the opportunity for modular solutions.

Beyond the development of common equipment, the Allies involved will also explore additional cooperation aspects such as training and experimentation, which are crucial for delivering the relevant capabilities.

The signatories anticipate that additional Allies will join this initiative in due course to expand the benefits this multinational construct is offering.







http://www.defense-aerospace.com/articles-view/release/3/175387/poland%2C-turkey-team-for-nato-electronic-warfare-project.html

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In the south-east of Turkey bomb blast killed 5 soldiers
Jul 11, 2016



The death toll from a roadside bomb attack in southeastern Turkey has risen to five, the country’s military has said.

Sunday’s blast in Hakkari province claimed four soldiers’ lives at the scene; a fifth soldier passed away later in hospital.

In a statement, the Turkish General Staff said PKK terrorists detonated a bomb in the Semdinli district as a military vehicle passed by.

Earlier on Sunday, the army said one soldier and a village guard were martyred in a bomb blast in Turkey’s eastern province of Van.

Ten soldiers were also injured – one critically – alongside five village guards in a PKK attack at 00.20 a.m. local time (0920GMT).

The attack targeted Pay gendarmerie station in the Ercis district of Van, the military said.

The PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU – resumed its 30-year armed campaign against the Turkish state in July 2015.

Since then, nearly 600 security personnel, including troops, police officers and village guards have been martyred and more than 5,000 PKK terrorists killed in operations across Turkey and northern Iraq.


http://defence-blog.com/army/in-the-south-east-of-turkey-bomb-blast-killed-5-soldiers.html

Citation :

In the south-east of Turkey bomb blast killed 5 soldiers
Jul 11, 2016



The death toll from a roadside bomb attack in southeastern Turkey has risen to five, the country’s military has said.

Sunday’s blast in Hakkari province claimed four soldiers’ lives at the scene; a fifth soldier passed away later in hospital.

In a statement, the Turkish General Staff said PKK terrorists detonated a bomb in the Semdinli district as a military vehicle passed by.

Earlier on Sunday, the army said one soldier and a village guard were martyred in a bomb blast in Turkey’s eastern province of Van.

Ten soldiers were also injured – one critically – alongside five village guards in a PKK attack at 00.20 a.m. local time (0920GMT).

The attack targeted Pay gendarmerie station in the Ercis district of Van, the military said.

The PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU – resumed its 30-year armed campaign against the Turkish state in July 2015.

Since then, nearly 600 security personnel, including troops, police officers and village guards have been martyred and more than 5,000 PKK terrorists killed in operations across Turkey and northern Iraq.


http://defence-blog.com/army/in-the-south-east-of-turkey-bomb-blast-killed-5-soldiers.html

Citation :

Turquie: tentative de coup d'Etat, confusion et violences à Ankara et Istanbul
15/07/2016 à 21h56

http://www.bfmtv.com/international/turquie-des-tirs-entendus-a-ankara-les-ponts-sur-le-bosphore-coupes-1006639.html

Citation :

Airbus certifies Turkish Air Force facility as regional CN235 maintenance centre

Andrew MacDonald, London - IHS Jane's Defence Industry

15 July 2016


Airbus Defence and Space announced on 14 July that it had finalised the certification of an air supply and maintenance centre operated by the Turkish Air Force in Kayseri as a regional maintenance and support hub for its CN235 transport aircraft.

Airbus has co-operated with Turkey over the approval of the maintenance facility since the signing of a letter of intent between the two parties in May 2015. Prior to its accreditation as a CN235 support centre, the Turkish Air Force's 2nd Air Supply and Maintenance Centre was already responsible for technical management of C-130s transports and KC-135R tankers, as well as AS-532 and UH-1H utility helicopters.

http://www.janes.com/article/62330/airbus-certifies-turkish-air-force-facility-as-regional-cn235-maintenance-centre

j'ai suivie à la télé cette semaine la tentative de putsch et heureusement que le peuple a stopper les putschistes.Cependant, cette action a démontré la puissance de la police turque et la faiblesse de l’Armée turque loyaliste.
la police a fait tout le travaille ( les arrestations de militaires armées jusqu'au dent , attaque des bases militaires).ce qui ne fera pas de bien à l'image de l'armée. sachant que la Turquie fait face à la menace du pkk et de l'EI.
N'ayant plus confiance , le président a écarté l’armée du processus de combat contre les putschistes.De plus les images de policiers arrêtant des militaires en tenue a choqué plusieurs personnes, car ils risquent de complexer le militaire et peux engendrer une guerre entre l’armée et la police a long terme .

Citation :

La France s’interroge sur la fiabilité de la Turquie dans la lutte contre l’État islamiquePosté dans Diplomatie, Moyen-Orient par Laurent Lagneau Le 18-07-2016


Le coup d’État fomenté, le 15 juillet, par une partie de l’armée turque, aura donc échoué. Et cela pour au moins deux raisons : le manque de soutien populaire et le fait qu’il a été mené par un groupe réduit de militaires. Si la communauté internationale, dans son ensemble, a salué une victoire de la démocratie, cette tentative ratée renforce dans le même temps le pouvoir de Recep Tayyip Erdogan, le président turc, déjà critiqué pour sa dérive autoritaire.

Ainsi, près de 3.000 militaires putschistes – ou accusés de faire partie du complot – ont été placés en détention. Et, chose qui peut paraître surprenante, un nombre équivalent de juges et de procureurs ont été mis « en garde à vue » quand ils n’ont pas été relevés de leurs fonctions. « Nous allons continuer d’éliminer le virus de toutes les institutions étatiques », a promis M. Erdogan, deux jours après cette tentative de coup d’État. En outre, il a indiqué réfléchir à rétablir la peine de mort, abolie en 2004. Au passage, si la Turquie prend ce chemin, alors elle s’éloignera d’une possible adhésion à l’Union européenne.

Justement, Johannes Hahn, le commissaire européen à l’Élargissement, a fait part de son scepticisme à propos de ce qui ressemble à une vaste purge au sein de l’appareil étatique turc. « On a au moins l’impression que quelque chose avait été préparé. Les listes sont disponibles, ce qui laisse penser que cela était préparé pour servir à un moment ou un autre », a-t-il dit. « Je suis très préoccupé. C’est exactement ce que nous redoutions », a-t-il ajouté.

Parmi les militaires arrêtés pour leur participation au putsch, l’on trouve le général Bekir Ercan Van, le commandant de la base aérienne d’Incirlik, utilisée par l’Otan ainsi que par la coalition anti-État islamique (EI ou Daesh). Quelques heures après l’échec du coup d’État, cette dernière a été fermée et privée d’électricité, ce qui a interrompu les opérations menées en Syrie et en Irak contre les jihadistes.

Pourtant, le gouvernement turc avait mis près d’un an avant de répondre favorablement à une demande américaine et d’autoriser ainsi la coalition à frapper l’EI depuis la base d’Incirlik. Et, pendant longtemps, les dirigeant turcs ont été accusés d’une certaine passivité à l’égard des jihadistes (pour ne pas dire plus) dans la mesure où ces derniers s’en prennent à la fois au régime syrien de Bachar el-Assad et aux combattants kurdes. Le revirement d’Ankara eut lieu après l’attentat de Suruç, commis le 20 juillet 2015 et attribué à Daesh.

« La Turquie s’est montrée, à un moment donné, trop peu agressive dans le contrôle des ressources pouvant alimenter Daesh ; je n’accuse pas le gouvernement turc, mais il est certain que Daesh a pu vendre en abondance du pétrole au marché noir. Les contrôles se révèlent aujourd’hui plus stricts, mais la Turquie doit mieux surveiller les 200 kilomètres de sa frontière avec la Syrie qui ne sont pas tenus par les Kurdes. De nombreux trafics se déroulent dans cette zone très poreuse, même si la Turquie a opéré une reprise en main depuis qu’elle a été frappée par des attentats », avait même déclaré Jean-Yves Le Drian, le ministre de la Défense, lors d’une audition à l’Assemblée nationale, en décembre 2015.

Pour autant, les doutes n’ont pas été totalement levés. Loin de là même. Ainsi, le 17 juillet, Jean-Marc Ayrault, le ministre français des Affaires étrangères, n’a pas pris de gant. « Il y a des questions qui se posent. Il y a une part de fiabilité et il y a une part de suspicion aussi, c’est vrai », a-t-il affirmé, en réponse à des questions portant sur la coopération d’Ankara dans la lutte contre l’EI.

La Turquie est un « grand pays, qui a une situation stratégique, qui est membre de l’Otan, qui est le premier pays frontalier de la Syrie, qui accueille deux millions et demi de réfugiés sur son territoire, et donc qui est un allié », a ensuite continué le ministre, qui a également estimé que le coup d’État manqué ne donnait pas « un chèque en blanc » au président Erdogan pour faire des « purges ».

Suite à ces déclarations, l’entourage de chef du Quai d’Orsay s’est empressé de préciser que M. Ayrault ne remettait pas en cause le rôle d’Ankara dans la lutte contre l’EI et que la Turquie restait même « un allié clé » contre l’organisation jihadiste.




http://www.opex360.com/2016/07/18/la-france-sinterroge-sur-la-fiabilite-de-la-turquie-dans-la-lutte-letat-islamique/

Citation :

Si les « purges » continuent, la Turquie risque d’être exclue de l’Otan, avertit John KerryPosté dans Otan par Laurent Lagneau Le 19-07-2016



Limogeage de milliers de fonctionnaires, des centaines de militaires, de policiers et de magistrats arrêtés, 70 généraux placés en garde à vue… Quatre jours après la tentative manqué d’un coup d’État fomenté par une partie de l’armée, les « purges » continuent en Turquie. Le président Recep Tayyip Erdoğan avait promis d’éliminer le « virus » au sein de l’État : il tient parole.

Cependant, ce putsch manqué permet à M. Erdoğan, dont la dérive autoritaire faisait déjà l’objet de vives critiques, de se débarrasser à bon compte de ses opposants. « On a au moins l’impression que quelque chose avait été préparé. Les listes sont disponibles, ce qui laisse penser que cela était préparé pour servir à un moment ou un autre », a résumé Johannes Hahn, le commissaire européen à l’Élargissement.

Dans un premier temps, le Occidentaux ont soutenu le président Erdoğan lors de cette tentative de coup d’État, estimant qu’il était primordial de soutenir l’ordre constitutionnel et les institutions démocratiques. Mais, devant l’ampleur des purges, le ton se fait plus inquiet.

Le secrétaire d’État américain, John Kerry, y est allé franco en évoquant l’exclusion éventuelle de la Turquie de l’Alliance atlantique si les purges devaient continuer.

« L’Otan a également des exigences en termes de démocraties », a dit le chef de la diplomatie américaine, à l’issue d’un sommet du Conseil de l’Europe. « Beaucoup de gens ont été arrêtés, et arrêtés très rapidement. Le niveau de vigilance et d’observation va évidemment être élevé dans les jours à venir. J’espère que nous pourrons travailler de manière constructive et éviter un retour en arrière », a-t-il ajouté.

« Nous espérons que le gouvernement [turc] sera à la hauteur des principes démocratiques inscrits dans sa Constitution », a, par la suite, commenté John Kirby, un porte-parole du département d’État. « Les institutions internationales comme l’UE et l’Otan regarderont certainement de près le fil des événements car les responsabilités démocratiques vont de pair avec l’adhésion », a-t-il ajouté.

Reste à voir si l’Otan pourrait se passer de la Turquie, qui en est membre depuis 1952, comme d’ailleurs la Grèce, avec laquelle Ankara n’entretient pas les meilleurs relations du monde. Et l’adhésion de ces deux pays à l’Alliance leur a très certainement évité une confrontation armée directe.

Mais surtout, au sein de l’Otan, la Turquie occupe une position stratégique dans la mesure où elle verrouille l’accès de la Méditerranée à la flotte russe de la Mer noire, via les détroits du Bosphore et des Dardanelles.

En outre, l’Otan dispose de plusieurs facilités en Turquie, dont la base aérienne d’Incirlik, actuellement utilisée par la coalition anti-État islamique (EI ou Daesh) dirigée par les États-Unis, le radar d’alerte avancée de Kürecik, qui sert à la défense antimissile des alliés, et d’un centre de commandement à Izmir (Allied Land Forces Southeastern Europe).


http://www.opex360.com/2016/07/19/si-les-purges-continuent-la-turquie-risque-detre-exclue-de-lotan-avertit-john-kerry/

Citation :

Failed coup in Turkey threatens military ties with key U.S. ally
Andrew Tilghman, Military Times 12:27 p.m. EDT July 19, 2016



The Turkish defense minister will not fly to Washington on Wednesday to attend a key meeting of the global coalition fighting the Islamic State, the latest sign that the Pentagon’s military relationship with the key Middle Eastern ally may be suffering in the wake of the failed coup attempt there last week.

Pentagon officials say that Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Işık will not attend the meeting hosted by U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.

Carter will convene dozens of top military officials from allied nations at the Air Force base to discuss the 2-year-old mission to oust the Islamic State form Iraq and Syria.


http://www.defensenews.com/story/military/2016/07/19/failed-coup-turkey-threatens-military-ties-key-us-ally/87288036/

Citation :

20 juil. 2016 | Par Guillaume Belan
La Turquie reçoit son premier hélicoptère lourd CH-47F



Le premier des 11 hélicoptères de transport CH- 47F Chinook commandés par la Turquie, a été remis au Commandement des forces terrestres à Ankara le 14 Juillet .


Ankara avait initialement signé un contrat d'une valeur de près de 400 millions de dollars en 2011 avec Boeing pour l'achat de six CH- 47 Chinooks de Boeing. Les trois premiers appareils seront livrés cet été, les trois autres avant la fin de l'année.
Puis, un autre contrat a été conclu pour cinq hélicoptères supplémentaires, qui doivent être livrés courant 2018. Quatre de ces hélicoptères du second batch doivent être utilisé par les forces spéciales turques tandis que le dernier sera mis en œuvre par le ministère de la Défense.

Les hélicoptères sont fabriqués aux Etats-Unis et assemblés à Izmir.





http://www.air-cosmos.com/la-turquie-recoit-son-premier-helicoptere-lourd-ch-47f-79579

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Hours Before Military Coup Attempt, Turkey Warned by Russia – Reports

According to Iranian media, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was warned by Russian intelligence of an imminent coup just hours before tanks appeared in the streets of Istanbul and Ankara last Friday.

Last week, the Russian army intercepted Turkish military communications that indicated a coup was being organized against the government of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, according to Fars News. This information was then passed on to Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT), diplomatic sources told the news agency.




The intercepted transmissions included helicopter communications ordering soldiers to arrest or kill the Turkish president in the resort town of Marmaris.

While relations have been tense between Ankara and Moscow since the November 2015 downing of a Russian Su-24 bomber in Syrian airspace, the situation improved after Erdogan issued a formal apology to Russian President Vladimir Putin last month.

"The diplomatic sources said the shift in Erdogan’s foreign policy stated only a week before the coup has been 'a major cause pushing several foreign states to provoke and promise support for the army to stage the coup, and the same shift also saved him,'" Fars News reports.

While neither government has issued a statement on the claims, an official statement released by the Turkish army on Tuesday did indicate that some kind of warning was received by MIT.

The failed coup attempt left nearly 300 people dead and over 1,000 injured, and has been blamed on supporters of exiled religious and political leader, and former Erdogan ally, Fethullah Gulen. Ankara has filed a formal request with the US government for Gulen’s extradition.

In the wake of the coup attempt, Ankara has launched an unprecedented crackdown on those suspected of being involved in the events of last week. Nearly 50,000 individuals have been targeted as part of a purge, including military personnel, educators, judges, and civil servants.

Earlier on Wednesday, Erdogan declared a three-month state of emergency, "in order to remove this threat as soon as possible."

The Turkish president also suggested that foreign nations may have played a role in failed takeover.

"Other states could be behind this coup attempt," he said.

"Gulenists have a 'supreme intelligence,' which could have plotted all this. The time will come for all these links to be revealed."

http://sputniknews.com/russia/20160721/1043373832/russia-warned-turkey-coup-attempt.html

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Comment: The Nukes with Turkey's Name On
(Source: British Forces News; posted July 20, 2016)
By Christopher Lee
Forty American nuclear warheads have been assigned to the Turkish Air Force in the event of a nuclear conflict - those warheads are already in Turkey today.

The warheads are assigned out of 90 US primary thermonuclear bombs, based at Incirlik.

They're part of an American deployment of approximately 200 nuclear bombs, in what is called the US Enduring Stockpile - retained after the end of the Cold War between the West and the USSR in the late 1990s.

The bomb is called the B61 - it has a maximum yield of up to 340 kilotons, according to the US Department of Defense and US Department of Energy (for comparison, the bombs dropped on Japan at the end of World War II were 15 and 21 kilotons).

The latest version is called the 'bunker buster' and was once assumed to be a weapon that could be made available to Israel in an offensive against Iranian nuclear weapon manufacturing.

One of the B61 pilot's targets from Europe would be the Russian wartime bunker beneath 1,000 feet of granite at Kosvinsky Kamen in the northern Urals.

The reason for the B61 bombs in Turkey is part of a rarely-discussed NATO plan. During a past NATO heads of government meeting it was agreed that under a scheme called the NATO Nuclear Sharing Policy, 180 B61 bombs would be deployed in five countries in Europe: Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and Turkey.

Ninety B61 bombs were sent to Turkey and stored at Incirlik with an agreement that in time of war that moved towards "nuclear release,” 40 of the bombs would be given to the Turkish Air Force.

This single arrangement demonstrates that Turkey is a major military member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.

Turkey joined NATO in 1952, just three years after the Alliance was formed on 4 April 1949. It has held a senior position at the table of equals ever since.

During the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, President John F. Kennedy agreed to remove US Jupiter ballistic missiles from Turkey in return for Russia's climb-down from the event that took the world close to nuclear war that year.

Today, NATO commands do not doubt the importance of Turkey - it maintains the second biggest standing army (after the US) in the Alliance - around 640,000. Turkey keeps its 8,000-troop high readiness 3rd Armour Corps entirely assigned to NATO. The Alliance Land Command HQ is at Izmir, along with major NATO training centres, and some 300 Turkish officers are in NATO commands.

Turkey may be the only Muslim state in NATO and may be more Asian to some than European but the country and its leadership, however described, is in no way 'fringe NATO' - anyone who floats the idea of kicking out Turkey had better read the list of its membership credentials - starting with the B61.

Citation :

Ankara Troops Hunt Down Purported Band of Coup Plotters Along Turkish Coast


Turkey’s Special Forces launched a massive manhunt for 11 missing commandos believed to have been involved in a failed attempt to capture President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the coastal town of Marmaris.

In the aftermath of the failed coup, Ankara has launched an unprecedented crackdown on those suspected of being involved. Over 13,000 people have been arrested, and tens of thousands more suspended from various government jobs.


On Tuesday, a group of 1,000 Turkish security service members attempted to track down 11 soldiers who were allegedly plotting to capture or kill President Erdogan on the night of the coup. Personnel searching on foot were backed by drones, helicopters, and even navy vessels.

The search took place in the hills surrounding Marmaris.

"It was an assassination attempt against Erdogan and this is being taken very seriously," an official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. "Searches are continuing in Marmaris and the surrounding areas with around 1,000 members of the security forces.

"Searches will continue uninterrupted until these people are found."

According to Hurriyet Daily News, seven soldiers thought to be responsible for the kidnap attempt have been captured.

Authorities seized weapons and ammunition in the surrounding countryside.

The Turkish government declared a state of emergency in the wake of the coup attempt, that saw more than 240 people killed and over 2,000 injured. President Erdogan is also said to be considering a reinstatement of the death penalty.

The coup attempt has been officially blamed on Fethullah Gulen, a religious and political figure who is a former ally of Erdogan, living in exile in the United States. While Ankara has requested his extradition, Washington has not complied.

"The evidence is crystal clear. We know the terrorist cult responsible for vicious attacks against us and the Turkish people," Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim claimed Tuesday.

"We are heartbroken at the way the US has treated this matter. We simply cannot understand why the US just can’t hand over this individual."


http://sputniknews.com/military/20160727/1043653644/turkey-hunts-coup-plotters-marmaris.html

Citation :

Turkey Identifies Percentage of Military Ankara Claims Took Part in Coup Attempt

As the Turkish government continues a widespread purge of its countrymen following last week’s coup attempt, precise numbers of those implicated are becoming clearer.

In the wake of the failed coup, Ankara has launched an unprecedented crackdown on those they claim were involved. In moves that many note appear to be well-scripted enough to have been planned in advance, approximately 1,684 military personnel have been dishonorably discharged, and tens of thousands of civil servants have been fired.



On Wednesday, the Turkish military provided a statement to Turkey’s NTV television and said it believes 8,651 soldiers took part in the coup, roughly 1.5% of Turkey’s forces.

The statement also provided figures for military hardware used.

At least 35 planes were used, 24 of which were fighter jets. Other aircraft included refueling tankers, as well as 37 helicopters.

On the ground, coup-supporters commandeered 37 tanks and 246 armored vehicles.

The statement affirmed that Turkey maintains the strength to put down future threats. Writing for AntiWar.com, Jason Ditz isn’t so sure.

"With Turkey continuing to sweep up more and more people in its purge, particularly from the military, many analysts are calling Turkey’s military a 'broken force,' and with so much of the military leadership swept up, it’s going to take a long time for it to recover," he writes.

The coup attempt saw at least 246 people killed and over 2,000 injured. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blamed the attempt on religious and political figure Fethullah Gulen, currently living in exile in Pennsylvania.

Ankara has requested Gulen’s extradition, but Washington has so far refused to comply.

Speaking during a panel organized by the Rossiya Segodnya News Agency on Thursday, German political scientist Alexander Rar suggested that Ankara may be forced to reconsider its geopolitical alignment if it ultimately discovers that a foreign government was behind the coup attempt.

"…If it turns out – and it is no longer possible to hide anything – that the attempted pitch against Erdogan was somehow sponsored by Saudi Arabia, or by other states," he said, "if it turns out that once again, as in 1980, US intelligence is behind the coup, I think that the question of Turkey’s exit from NATO can be put on the agenda."


http://sputniknews.com/military/20160729/1043735964/turkey-coup-numbers.html

Citation :

Turkish Official: Erdogan Wants Military Under His Direct Control
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02:32 30.07.2016(updated 05:42 30.07.2016)
According to a Turkish parliamentary official, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in his major overhaul of the country’s military following the failed coup attempt, is seeking to put Turkey’s armed forces and national intelligence agency (MIT) under direct presidential control.
After a five-hour meeting of Turkey's Supreme Military Council, chaired by Prime Minister Binali Yildirim and including top brass, Erdogan announced his decision to keep armed forces chief Hulusi Akar, and the army, navy and air force commanders at their posts. Only minor changes to the top military ranks were made.
But some 40 percent of the country's generals and admirals, along with nearly 1,700 military personnel, were detained, as Erdogan stated that NATO's second largest military force needs "fresh blood."
Erdogan's aim to put the country's military and intelligence forces, who currently report to the prime minister, under presidential control, will require a constitutional amendment according to Turkish media. To do that, Erdogan must get the support of opposition parties in the parliament, something that many say he can achieve.
"The president said that… he would discuss with opposition parties bringing the General Staff and the MIT (intelligence agency) under the control of the presidency," the parliamentary official said.
According to Jason Ditz of AntiWar.com, the Turkish military has historically enjoyed a great degree of autonomy, perceiving itself as a "protector" of democracy in Turkey. This has led to numerous successful coups in recent Turkish history, after the military started to feel its autonomy threatened by the administration. Erdogan has pushed to limit this autonomy, possibly indicating the reasoning behind the recent coup attempt.
If Erdogan succeeds in bringing those forces under his control, it will mark an historic shift in the balance of power in the country, a "dramatic change for the structure of Turkey," according to Ditz.


Read more: http://sputniknews.com/military/20160730/1043774612/erdogan-military-intelligence-presidential-control.html#ixzz4FucEbiN3