About 200,000 troops in SE Turkey: security sources

[Barrett808]

Source: Reuters

DIYARBAKIR, Turkey, July 13 (Reuters) - Turkey's army has boosted troop levels in the southeast to more than 200,000, most of them stationed along the border with Iraq, security sources told Reuters on Friday.

The unusually large-scale buildup, which includes tanks, heavy artillery and aircraft, is part of a security crackdown on Kurdish rebels hiding in southeast Turkey and northern Iraq, said the security sources, who declined to be named.

NATO member Turkey has refused to rule out a possible cross-border operation to crush Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) rebels, despite opposition from the United States and Iraq.

The military General Staff in Ankara was not immediately available for comment on the troop numbers.

Read more: http://wap.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L13537048.htm

[bemildred]

1. Just a precautionary measure, of course. Nothing to worry about. nt

[Skink]

2. Maybe they want to liberate Iraq.

[Az_lefty]

3. Last week it was 140,000 now 200,000 troops.

Looks like the PKK are about to get hit. This is not going to help things in Iraq, we could get bogged down even longer.

[TexasLawyer]

4. good thing we're defending NATO-member Turkey

Now we can fight ourselves. :sarcasm:

[Euphen]

5. I don't think Turkey will actually invade northern Iraq.

This is probably just an attempt to put pressure on the US to do something about the PKK, and to please the Turkish public, which is fuming over the situation. The WSWS has a good analysis:

"The Turkish generals have repeatedly declared their readiness to march into northern Iraq if only the government gave the go-ahead. In fact, such an intervention is rejected in the first place by the US, which is dependent on the loyal support of Kurdish organizations for the maintenance of their occupation of the country. For its part, the Turkish army, which plays a key role on the east flank of NATO, owes a debt to the US, which has repeatedly supported its putsches and has played a major role in providing military equipment. Under these conditions, the military has qualms about snubbing its most important sponsor and taking responsibility for a Turkish-Kurdish war. This has not prevented the high command from denouncing members of the Erdogan government as traitors for failing to give the go-ahead for an invasion.

"The pinnacle of the military campaign was an appeal by the general staff published in the internet calling for “collective resistance” to terrorism and all those hiding behind “peace, liberty and democracy” who in reality would support terrorism. The statement goes on to say that the unity of the Turkish national state is threatened, and the Turkish nation must respond with street protests—in fact a thinly veiled call for the overthrow of the elected government.

"There was an immediate response to this call. A day later two workers in west Turkey were beaten up by a right wing mob and almost killed. Their offence was that they were wearing t-shirts featuring the deceased Kurdish singer Ahmet Kaya. Such appeals by the military to fascist elements means playing with fire, which threatens to plunge the country into civil war and a regional war against Iraq.

"As the representative of the “Anatolian bourgeoisie,” the AKP is neither willing nor able to oppose the offensive by the Turkish military against basic democratic rights. Erdogan has not ruled out an invasion of northern Iraq and has stressed his solidarity with the military. One had to carry out the “fight against terrorism” firstly in Turkey instead of in northern Iraq, he declared. The AKP has already made clear what this means: more power for the Turkish police. Foreign minister Abdullah Gül recently repeated that the government would be ready to call a special session of parliament in order to authorize military action against northern Iraq, if the military formally requested it, which the general staff has so far refused to do."

http://wsws.org/articles/2007/jul2007/turk-j11.shtml

[Megahurtz]

6. Great.

Here come The Turks again. :sarcasm:

[Disturbed]

7. Turkish Military Forces

Turkish Military Forces

Table of Contents

Army
Air Force
Navy


Army (Turk Kara Kuvvetleri)

Personel: 500,000

Organization:
4 Armies
10 Army Corps

Equipment:

MAIN BATTLE TANKS (CFE ceiling: 2,795): 3,500
Included in the above number are:
Leopard 1A1/1A3, M60A3/A1, M48A5T2/A5T1/A1/A2.

ARMOURED VEHICLES (CFE ceilling: 3,120): 4,700
Included in the above number are:
M113A1/A3, BTR-80, AIFV/TUA.

S/P ARTILLERY (CFE ceiling: 3,523): 850
Included in the above number are:
M110A2, M108, M107, M52/T, M44T.

ROCKET LAUNCHERS: 90
Included in the above number are:
MLRS, RA-7040, TR-107.

TOWED ARTILLERY: 1,700
Included in the above number are:
M-116, M-115, M-114, M-101.

A/A ARTILLERY: 2,500
Included in the above number are:
RH-202, L/70/60, GDF-001/003, GAI-DO-01, M55, M42.

A/A MISSILE SYSTEMS: 5,000
Included in the above number are:
FIM-92RMP "Stinger", RAPIER, FIM-43A "Redeye".

A/T WEAPONS:
Included in the above number are: 5,000+
TOWM, MILAN, M40, 57mm, 75mm, 90mm.

MORTARS: 5,500+
Included in the above number are:
M-125, M-106, M-30, M-29, M-19, M-2.

ARMY AVIATION: 600+
Included in the above number are:
AH-1P/W, S-70A, UH-1B/D/H, SA 532 "Cougar", Bell 206L, Bell TH-13, TH-300C, AB-205A/206/212, R-22, Citabria 150S, T42A, Cessna 206/421, Do.-27A/28D2, C12, U-17, L-18, O-1E.

(Back to Table of Contents)

Air Force (Turk Hava Kuvvetleri)

Personel: 60,000

Organization:
2 Tactical Air Commands
1 Transport Command
1 Air Training command

Equipment:

FIGHTERS (CFE ceiling: 750): 500
Included in the above number are:
F-16C/D, F-4E, F-5A/B, NF-5A/B.

RECONAISSANCE: 50
Included in the above number are:
RF-4E, RF-5A.

TRANSPORT: 100
Included in the above number are:
C-130B/E, C-160T, KC-135A, CN-235M, Citation II/III, Gulfstream IV, C-47D.

TRAINING: 250
Included in the above number are:
T-38A, T-37B/C, SF-260D.

HELICOPTERS: 50+
Included in the above number are:
UH-1H.