Turkish Armed Forces

"A new era is beginning in Afghanistan and in the region, with Turkey standing with the United States and NATO. The United States has decided to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan and wants the Kabul airport to continue operating," said the first man of Turkey.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said late on May 12 that Turkey is determined to provide peace and security in northern Syria, noting its struggle with those attempting to disrupt peace will continue. 

During a visit to the southern Turkish province of Hatay near Syria, Akar held a videoconference with the commanders of troops serving along the border and beyond.

A Turkish soldier was killed and four others wounded in an attack on a supply convoy in northern Syria, Turkey's National Defense Ministry said early on May 11. 

"In the Operation Spring Shield zone, one of our hero fellow soldiers was martyred and four of our heroic fellow soldiers were injured in the rocket attack on our supply convoy on May 10, 2021," the ministry said on Twitter.

Iraq on May 3 summoned the top Turkish diplomat in Baghdad to protest the Turkish defense minister's weekend visit to a military base in northern Iraq.

The Iraqi Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it handed the Turkish charge d'affaires a protest note over Hulusi Akar's visit to a Turkish base in northern Iraq.

A Turkish military jet trainer crashed on April 9 in the Aegean Sea, the Turkish Defense Ministry said.

According to a ministry statement, the two pilots of the KT-1 type plane that crashed during its regular training flight were rescued by Turkish Coast Guard teams.

The plane crashed due to engine failure, it said.

Turkey on April 5 detained 10 retired admirals after 104 of them signed a letter over remarks made by Parliament Speaker Mustafa Şentop on the Montreux Convention. 

The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) has successfully completed its four-day Operation Claw-Eagle 2 and cleared Gara region of Northern Iraq of PKK elements, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said Feb. 14, adding that PKK terrorists killed 13 unarmed Turkish citizens that they were held hostage since 2015.

A Turkish flag in the city of Istanbul, May 2020. Photo: EPA-EFE/ERDEM SAHIN

The arrests came after prosecutors in the city of Izmir on Tuesday ordered the detention of 238 serving and former military officers including high-ranking soldiers.

A total of 218 of the suspects are still serving in various branches of the Turkish Armed Forces and Gendarmerie.

A top Turkish official is calling on the new U.S. administration to engage in a dialogue with Turkey and to review a decision to sanction the country over its purchase of an advanced Russian air defense system.

That request comes even though Washington has made clear that there can be no waiver of the sanctions until Ankara disposes of the Russian technology.

The Turkish personnel assigned to work in the joint monitoring center in Karabakh arrived in Azerbaijan, the Turkish defense minister announced on Dec. 29.