Defense Ministry

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Nov. 2 offered a new unilateral humanitarian pause for Syria's war-ravaged Aleppo, urging rebels to use it to leave the city's eastern, besieged districts. The Syrian rebels quickly dismissed Vladimir Putin's initiative.

Turkey's military academy will resume student admissions in February 2017, following a halt after the failed July 15 coup attempt.

The academic year will kick off in February 2017 primarily for the air force academy, according to an official from the Defense Ministry who wanted to remain anonymous. 

The Defense Ministry has prepared new posters to attract fresh recruits to Turkey's Special Forces Command, amid ongoing suspensions and dismissals carried out in the army since the failed coup attempt of July 15. 

In line with the new campaign, the Special Forces Command will recruit personnel from outside the military for the first time ever. 

The Defense Ministry dismissed 195 more personnel from Turkey's land and naval forces as part of the investigation into the movement of U.S.-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen, widely believed to be behind the July 15 military coup attempt. 

Turkey's defense and aerospace industry will shift from its current foreign computer operating system to an existing Linux-based national software in light of security needs and license costs, according to the head of the state defense firm which has undertaken the project.

Several lawmakers in Bulgaria are demanding that the Defense Minister comment on reports that the criteria for the acquisition of new multirole fighter aircraft have been altered.

Turkish fighter jets entered Greece's air space Wednesday, prompting the response of two Greek aircraft, and leading to a dogfight between the two sides, the first such incident of its kind since a failed military coup in Turkey on July 15.

Nine Turkish Air Force jet pilots who were detained and then released as part of probes against Gülenists were re-assigned and are participating in aerial operations after the military said it was experiencing a personnel deficit due to major suspensions in the institution.   

The Turkish Armed Forces has dismissed a further 233 soldiers over the failed coup attempt of July 15, the Defense Ministry announced on Oct. 12.

Some 201 of the dismissed soldiers were from the air force while the other 32 were from the naval forces. 

Some 158 of the dismissed personnel were officers. 

Russia is considering plans to resume its military presence in Vietnam and Cuba where Moscow earlier had military bases, Russian news agencies quoted Russian Deputy Defense Minister Nikolai Pankov as saying on Oct. 7. 

"We are dealing with this issue," the agencies quoted Pankov as saying in the State Duma lower house of Russia's parliament, according to Reuters.