From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Turkish Army Components Turkish Army List of current regiments Structure of the Turkish Army Administration Overseas Deployments Equipment Modern Equipment History History of the Turkish Army Timeline of the Turkish Army Personnel List of senior officers Officer rank insignia Other ranks rank insignia

v • d • e Turkish Armed Forces Turkish Army – Turkish Air Force – Turkish Navy – Turkish Gendarmerie – Turkish Coast Guard

The Turkish Army (Turkish: Türk Kara Kuvvetleri) is a branch of the Turkish Armed Forces.

The Turkish Army is one of the largest standing armies in the world and the second largest army of NATO.^[1][2] The Turkish Army can deploy an Army Corps of 50,000 men to conduct joint operations at short notice.^[3] The Army can conduct air assault operations with a lift capability of up to 6 battalions at a time, day and night.^[4]

Chief of the Turkish General Staff: General Yaşar Büyükanıt

Commander of the Army: General İlker Başbuğ

Contents 1 History 1.1 Foundation of the Republic of Turkey 1.2 Cold War Era 1.3 Modernization 2 Mission 3 Structure 4 Branch Insignia 5 See also 6 References and notes 7 External links

Main article: Military history of Turkey

See also: Military of the Ottoman Empire

The Turkish Army has its foundations in remnant Ottoman forces inherited after the fall of the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I. The rise of Turkish nationalism in Anatolia, under the leadership of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, led eventually to victory in the Turkish War of Independence, and subsequently to the founding of the Republic of Turkey, at which time these remnant forces were reorganized into the Turkish Army.

The Turkish Army participated in the Korean War as a member state of the United Nations, suffering 731 deaths in combat out of 5000 soldiers.

Following its membership of NATO on February 18, 1952, the Republic of Turkey initiated a comprehensive modernization program for its Armed Forces.

In July 1974, the Turkish Armed Forces intervened against a coup in Cyprus, organized by EOKA-B and led by Nikos Sampson who ousted the democratically elected Cypriot President Archbishop Makarios III in order to establish Enosis (Union) between Greece and Cyprus. The coup was backed by the Greek military junta in Athens. The conflict in Cyprus lasted until August 1974 and resulted in the de-facto division of the island between the Turkish Cypriot controlled north and the Greek Cypriot controlled south. Turkey still maintains troops in Cyprus, since a political solution could not yet be achieved and since many members of the Turkish Cypriot community fear a return to the intercommunal violence which occurred between 1963 and 1974.^[5][6] A referendum in 2004 for the Annan Plan which aimed at reunifying the island was supported by the Turkish Cypriots, but rejected by the Greek Cypriots, on the pretext that it gave too many rights and political power to the Turkish Cypriots who make up 1/5 of the island's population.

In 1974 official British military reports said the Army included First Army (II, III, V, and XV Corps), Second Army (IV, VI, and VII Corps) and Third Army (VIII, IX, and XI Corps). There were also three Interior Zones with three recruit training divisions and four recruit training brigades.^[7]

Towards the end of the 1980s, a restructuring and modernization process has been initiated by the Turkish Armed Forces, which still continues today. The final goal of Turkey is to produce indigenous military equipment and to become increasingly self-sufficient in terms of military technologies.

Turkey is located in a vitally important and challenging region with various political regimes, religions, economic systems and military powers. Due to its strategic position surrounded by the Black, Aegean and the Mediterranean Seas, as well as the Balkans, the Caucasus and the Middle East, it is a focal point where international geostrategic lines and routes of the three continents of the Old World (Europe, Asia and Africa) intersect. Turkey, which controls the Turkish Straits, is also well positioned to control the Suez Canal and consequently the maritime traffic in the region.

Eastern and Southeastern Anatolia are the shortest land and air transport routes to the vast energy resources in the Middle East. Radical changes are taking place in the region around Turkey, and these changes bring great challenges with them. While the uncertainties in the content and duration of these changes continue, Turkey stands firm as an element of stability in the region.

In this environment of uncertainty, the threat to the security of Turkey is no longer comprised solely of the various regimes and military powers in the region, but also of political, economic and social instabilities, border disputes, struggles of power and terrorism.

In addition to the regional crises, the Turkish Armed Forces must -based on political decisions- also be prepared to respond to the crises which pose a threat to global peace.

Strictly adhering to Atatürk’s principle, "Peace at Home, Peace in the World", the Armed Forces of the Republic of Turkey are determined not to pursue any aggressive intentions, but will take action when the independence of the Turkish state and the security and honour of the Turkish nation are threatened; in parallel with the common ideals of international organizations and treaties of which Turkey is a member and signatory.

As a member of the NATO Alliance, the Republic of Turkey has ensured an increased sense of security to her allies and has contributed to the protection of global peace as well. Turkey continues to cooperate with NATO countries in the field of defense and fully supports the initiatives towards global disarmament and arms control. In this context, Turkey is committed to a global disarmament plan that is realized under an effective control mechanism, which does not adversely affect the security of any nation.

In an environment full of hot conflicts, Turkey, having great importance as the last link within the NATO defense chain, must have a powerful national defense capability and a strong Army that's ready to effectively react against potential dangers.

The main elements of the Turkish Defense Doctrine are the determination for national defense, NATO solidarity and loyalty to the Turkish Armed Forces.

Turkish Army is organized into the following commands^[8]:

• Land Forces Command (Turkish:Kara Kuvvetleri Komutanlığı (KKK))
  • 1st Army Command - Istanbul
  • 2nd Army Command - Malatya
  • 3rd Army Command - Erzincan
  • Aegean Army Command - İzmir (also called the Fourth Army
  • Cyprus Turkish Forces Command - Girne, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
  • Training and Doctrine Command
  • Logistics Command
  • Army Aviation Command

These commands consist of the following structure^[9]:

• 9 Army Corps
• 1 Infantry Division
• 2 Mechanized Infantry Divisions
• 1 Armored Division
• 1 Training Division
• 11 Infantry / Motorized Infantry Brigades
• 16 Mechanized Infantry Brigades
• 9 Armored Brigades
• 5 Para-Commando Brigades
• 1 Army Aviation BrigadesE
• 2 Artillery Brigades
• 5 Training Brigades
• 1 Humanitarian Aid Brigade

These units are organized as four Field Armies and Logistics Command and Training and Doctrine Command, which are subordinate to the Turkish Land Forces.

COMBATANT

• General staff
• Infantry
• Cavalry
• Armoury
• Land Aviation

BATTLE SUPPORTING

• Artillery
• Bulwark
• Air defence
• Correspondence
• Intelligence

BATTLE SUPPORTING & SERVICE

• Communications
• Ordnance
• Supplies
• Personnel
• Cartography
• Transportation
• Finance
• Instructor
• Judge
• Military Band
• Medical, dental and pharmaceutical corps
• Veterinary corps
• Engineer, chemist and technician corps

Source : http://www.kkk.tsk.mil.tr/GenelKonular/RutbeIsaretler/SinifYaka/

• Modern equipment and uniform of the Turkish Army‎

• Articles on the History of Ottoman Turkish Army
• Turkish Land Forces
• AFSOUTH Fact sheet - Turkey
• This article contains material from the CIA World Factbook (2004 edition) which, as a US government publication, is in the public domain.

• Turkish Armed Forces Website
• Turkish Army Website in Turkish

v • d • e North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
Members	Belgium · Bulgaria · Canada · Czech Republic · Denmark · Estonia · France · Germany · Greece · Hungary · Iceland · Italy · Latvia · Lithuania · Luxembourg · Netherlands · Norway · Poland · Portugal · Romania · Slovakia · Slovenia · Spain · Turkey · United Kingdom · United States
Candidates	Albania · Croatia · Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) ·  *