Erdoğan assumes authority to declare mobilization

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has taken upon himself the authority to declare mobilization and a state of war, a power previously held by the ministerial cabinet.

The shift in authority was formalized through a regulation published in the country's official gazette on May 22, bearing Erdoğan's signature.

The new "Mobilization and State of War Regulation" replaces the previous regulation, which had been in place since 1990. This change is a direct consequence of the 2018 restructuring of Türkiye's government system, which transformed the ministerial cabinet into the presidential cabinet.

According to the 52-page document, the regulation's aim is "to be able to quickly and effectively transfer all the power and resources of the State from a state of peace to a state of mobilization or war."

The regulation outlines that mobilization encompasses all preparations and measures to ready the country's armed forces for war, as well as adapting the national economy and management to wartime conditions.

The Defense Ministry defines mobilization as a state in which rights and freedoms are partially or completely restricted by law. For mobilization to be declared, there must be an imminent possibility of war with another state or states, or a situation of internal turmoil that cannot be managed under normal conditions.