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OUTLAW 09
08-04-2016, 05:10 PM
BREAKING: German foreign minister says reinstatement of death penalty in Turkey would prevent its entry into EU

Erdogan's purge of "66,000 people...is far more than could possibly be justified"
http://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/natosource/turkey-s-new-anti-americanism …

OUTLAW 09
08-05-2016, 08:07 AM
US officials express doubt over Gulen extradition, saying evidence from #Turkey linking imam to failed coup is thin:
http://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-not-persuaded-to-extradite-imam-over-turkey-coup-1470357556 …

Actually "thin" is a mild word for virtually no evidence outside of accusations....

AS he was never involved to begin with......

OUTLAW 09
08-06-2016, 03:13 PM
US Embassy in #Turkey debunks a fake photo of Ambassador Bass and coup plotter day before failed coup.

https://twitter.com/USEmbassyTurkey/status/761879984457781249 …

OUTLAW 09
08-07-2016, 06:01 PM
Turkey's President is ready for 'a new beginning' with his 'friend' Vladimir Putin http://read.bi/2aYHjKx

OUTLAW 09
08-08-2016, 10:31 AM
Erdogan ready to resume Turkish Stream talks immediately
https://twitter.com/vedomosti/status/762593721900728320 …

Turkish lawmaker demands closure of @NATO #Incirlik Air Base, home to US nukes
http://sptnkne.ws/bSfF #Turkey

OUTLAW 09
08-09-2016, 05:23 AM
Turkey & Russia were insulting each other in May; now Erdogan & Putin are looking to make up
http://nyti.ms/2bfqrwY

OUTLAW 09
08-09-2016, 07:20 AM
Erdogan bullies both the EU and especially lately Germany so he just keeps it up with the US.....

Turkey has been clearly told what must be provided as solid evidence against Gulen BUT has nothing as there is nothing against Gulen.....

CNN Trk ENG
✔ @CNNTURK_ENG #BREAKING Turkish Justice Minsiter:If U.S decides not to extradite #Gulen, U.S will sacrifice Turkey to a terrorist


Erdogan can huff and puff BUT in the end he urgently needs cash inflow from the EU which takes about the entire Turkish fruit and vegetable production and kicks back a ton of foreign currency transfers from Turks working within the EU....NAD he needs the NATO funds that flow in the millions as well..

WHY....the Turkish economy is tanking badly and if the much hoped full by all Turks free visa travel to the EU does not happen THEN Erdogan has a serious problem....

By pivoting to Putin makes in the end no sense as Russia and Turkey have historically never been close friends and Putin has no money....

Comment from a German commenter who has been tracking Turkish involvement in Syria for the last few years....

While many see a Putin/Erdogan alliance on the making, I (so far) see them at war and mostly tricking each other.

OUTLAW 09
08-09-2016, 07:45 AM
Erdogan bullies both the EU and especially lately Germany so he just keeps it up with the US.....

Turkey has been clearly told what must be provided as solid evidence against Gulen BUT has nothing as there is nothing against Gulen.....

CNN Trk ENG
✔ @CNNTURK_ENG #BREAKING Turkish Justice Minsiter:If U.S decides not to extradite #Gulen, U.S will sacrifice Turkey to a terrorist


Erdogan can huff and puff BUT in the end he urgently needs cash inflow from the EU which takes about the entire Turkish fruit and vegetable production and kicks back a ton of foreign currency transfers from Turks working within the EU....NAD he needs the NATO funds that flow in the millions as well..

WHY....the Turkish economy is tanking badly and if the much hoped full by all Turks free visa travel to the EU does not happen THEN Erdogan has a serious problem....

By pivoting to Putin makes in the end no sense as Russia and Turkey have historically never been close friends and Putin has no money....

Comment from a German commenter who has been tracking Turkish involvement in Syria for the last few years....

While many see a Putin/Erdogan alliance on the making, I (so far) see them at war and mostly tricking each other.

Turkey continues to show the world how to be the best at democracy https://twitter.com/anadoluagency/status/762895545996369920 …

OUTLAW 09
08-11-2016, 10:15 AM
REMEMBER right after Erdogan apologized for the SU24 shot down and his FM made a statement that they Russian could fly from the NATO base....but then he massively backtracked his statement after NATO raised warnings....LONG before the coup.....

NOW......

BREAKING: Turkey offers Russia joint operations against #ISIS in Syria: foreign minister - AFP

Erdogan is seriously risking a break with NATO and the millions in funds he gets from both NATO and the US.....

He is attempting to blackmail both the US and the EU and he just might actually fail....

OUTLAW 09
08-11-2016, 10:56 AM
Turkey's FM: We may seek other options for cooperation in defence sector outside of @NATO
http://turkey.liveuamap.com/en/2016/11-august-turkeys-foreign-minister-we-may-seek-other-options …

Amazingly the Turkish FM appears to have forgotten that all Russia can offer Turkey right now is a pipeline that needs to be approved by the entire EU which he and Erdogan have slammed repeatedly these last weeks, Russia will purchase on credit Turkish fruit and vegetables which largely always went to the EU for hard euros now weak Rubles and a bunch of tourists evidently not afraid of IS/PKK suicide attacks.....

Not much actually when one thinks about it....Turkey still urgently needs EU financial assistance and the NATO funds it pours into Turkey for basing rights....that Russia cannot currently match due to poor finances at home.

AdamG
08-11-2016, 04:51 PM
Separate thread for maximum visibility.
Posted in this forum because of the implications from the content.
Podcast won't be available until something like 12 hours after this post.


The fallout from last month's failed coup in Turkey against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's government has lead to the detainment and firing of around 67,000 officials across nearly every aspect of Turkish society.

Not included in that number is the man accused of being responsible for every one of them, the alleged leader of the coup: Fetullah Gulen, a reclusive Muslim cleric living in self-imposed exile in rural Pennsylvania since 1999.

A former ally of President Erdoğan until 2013, Gulen is the founder of the Hizmet movement and the organization the Alliance for Shared Values, which teaches a form of Islam that embraces science, education, and interfaith dialogue. He's earned millions of followers both in Turkey and internationally, and is said to also have established around 800 schools worldwide, from Africa to right here in the United States.

Robert Amsterdam, a founding partner of Amsterdam & Partners, is currently working with the Turkish government on its extradition case against Gulen. The Turkish government wants extradition for allegedly inspiring the coup, but Amsterdam says that Gulen's entrenchment in the American political and education system is reason enough to prosecute.

http://www.wnyc.org/story/erdogans-american-lawyer/

davidbfpo
08-12-2016, 07:21 AM
An interesting choice of lawyer - hired by Turkey - with human rights cases fought:http://www.amsterdamandpartners.com/staff/robert-amsterdam/

On HR their website says:
Amsterdam & Partners is committed to holding states accountable for their violations of the human rights of their citizens and residents. Through high-profile political advocacy, engagement with international and regional institutions, and collaboration with human rights organisations, the firm continues to challenge the abuse of state power on behalf of affected individuals and organisations.

There is a US-Turkey extradition treaty and this article explains briefly what is required. One British extradition lawyer opinion is that Gulen could be extradited, but points out an application would fail in Europe due to HR issues:http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/analysis-turkey-faces-tough-legal-battle-over-gulen-extradition-641832093

OUTLAW 09
08-12-2016, 07:46 AM
Turkey's FM: We may seek other options for cooperation in defence sector outside of @NATO
http://turkey.liveuamap.com/en/2016/11-august-turkeys-foreign-minister-we-may-seek-other-options …

Amazingly the Turkish FM appears to have forgotten that all Russia can offer Turkey right now is a pipeline that needs to be approved by the entire EU which he and Erdogan have slammed repeatedly these last weeks, Russia will purchase on credit Turkish fruit and vegetables which largely always went to the EU for hard euros now weak Rubles and a bunch of tourists evidently not afraid of IS/PKK suicide attacks.....

Not much actually when one thinks about it....Turkey still urgently needs EU financial assistance and the NATO funds it pours into Turkey for basing rights....that Russia cannot currently match due to poor finances at home.

Well worth reading this commenter...he is stating that Erdogan is making some major mistakes he would not have made a few years ago...effects of being power for so long.....

A Turkey out of NATO might bring the worst of all battles. By @TheActualAmmar

OUTLAW 09
08-13-2016, 05:13 PM
Pro-Gulen generals coordinated with PKK, Assad, YPG: report
https://en.zamanalwsl.net/news/17395.html

OUTLAW 09
08-15-2016, 07:57 AM
Appears that the second email data dump of the AKP emails by WikiLeaks contained an unusual amount of malware...

https://github.com/bontchev/wlscrape...ter/malware.md

Malware hosted by Wikileaks


The following table contains the confirmed malware residing on the Wikileaks site. The list is by no means exhaustive; I am just starting with the analysis. But what is listed below is definitely malware; no doubts about it.

The first column contains a link to the e-mail on the Wikileaks site that contains the malicious attachment. The e-mail itself is safe to view (although the text is usually spam/scam/phish/whatever).

The second column contains the URL on the Wikileaks site where the malicious attachment to this e-mail message resides. Since this is a direct link (i.e., clicking it would result in the malware being directly downloaded to your PC), I have obfuscated the link by replacing "https" with "hxxxx" and putting square brackets around the dot in ".org", in order to make the link non-clickable. If you desire to download the malware and check for yourself that it is, indeed, malware, you can trivially deobfuscate the link - just, please, do be careful.

The third column contains links leading to a VirusTotal page, showing how the different scanners are reporting the malware. Those are safe to click.

Qudos to Hasherazade for making her tool VTScan for batch querying VirusTotal publicly available.

Wikileaks e-mail

Wikileaks URL to the malicious attachment

VirusTotal analysis

36138 hxxxx://wikileaks[.]org/akp-emails/fileid/36138/20098 F36CB35F410AB65958A6CCA846737A9C

Continued as the list is long.....

Apparently the hacker was not that well versed in not pulling the junk mail account or simply in a hurry OR Wikileaks was well aware of the malware and wanted to spread them.......

OUTLAW 09
08-15-2016, 01:14 PM
Give us EU visa freedom in October or abandon migrant deal, Turkey says FM
http://reut.rs/2b8KH4q

Not so sure turkey realizes they are threatening the EU especially after the EU stated...if the death sentence comes into play there will never be a visa freedom and until Turkey eases their Emergency Laws back to EU democratic standards there will be no easing.....

So all the bluster in the world is not about to change EU opinions...besides Turkey needs the EU trade association agreements to continue especially in the agricultural areas.

Turkey state news agency commentary says Ankara's cozying up to Russia doesn't mean its drifting from NATO alliance
http://aa.com.tr/tr/analiz-haber/turk-rus-iliskilerinin-duzeltilmesi-cabalari-ve-nato-iki-kanadin-hikayesi-ve-jeopolitik/628910 …

OUTLAW 09
08-15-2016, 04:49 PM
Turkey MoD @fikriisik: "Our #NATO allies are very [selfish] in terms of sharing technology"
http://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/natosource/nato-needs-to-look-in-mirror-on-coup-attempt-says-defense-minister …

Turkey has always been weak on the protection of classified technolgy and has the highest corruption rate right now of the world...not mentioned by this Turkish MoD spokesperson......

OUTLAW 09
08-15-2016, 05:05 PM
Turkey's defense minister on purge of military leaders: "The number of generals in Turkish army was way too high"
http://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/natosource/nato-needs-to-look-in-mirror-on-coup-attempt-says-defense-minister …

One way to reduce the defense Budget

Turkey says its failed coup was decades in the making
http://read.bi/2b97b5i
BUT WAIT then the Turkish intelligence ALL should be fired for not detecting it until the day before YET they claim over 20K were involved

OUTLAW 09
08-16-2016, 07:09 AM
Turkish police raid 44 firms in coup probe, to detain executives: state media
http://reut.rs/2bjCnAk

NOTE:
Oops. Pro-Erdogan production company registers coup-themed movie website 2 months before the coup. https://twitter.com/husrevo/status/765232276246564865 …

OUTLAW 09
08-19-2016, 08:12 AM
Turkey's anti-Gulen clampdown now rages out of control
http://ow.ly/IW1i303nHAN
Random arresting of business owners and closing down their stores....maybe because of "Gulan economics"??????

Turkish FM again threatened the EU over their free visa demands WHICH Erdogan staked his political career on and the EU will not fulfill under pressure..as he needs to show success to his AKP supporters.

EU response this morning..."it takes two to tango"......

davidbfpo
09-23-2016, 08:11 PM
Although the Gulenist movement is the title and focus this ECFR paper provides a good overview of how Turkey came to be where it is today:http://www.ecfr.eu/publications/summary/the_good_the_bad_and_the_gulenists7131?

It concludes:
Overall, the securitisation of the Turkish political space undermines its democracy and tarnishes its image at home and abroad. At times, the post-coup period itself feels like a coup in and of itself. The risk is that, in its righteous anger and its attempt to clean the state, the Turkish government might destroy the frail democracy it is trying to save.

Azor
01-07-2017, 11:06 PM
Could this also be a ploy by Russia to repeat the Kennedy-Khrushchev deal on removing the Jupiter IRBM from Turkey after the Cuba Crisis? The US nuclear warheads are all bombs and some have argued for their removal recently, IIRC in WoTR. An astute move if true.

That would be a useless move. Not only are the bombs being withdrawn to Romania due to the coup d'etat attempt, but a Russian provocation of that nature would result in the following:

1. US deployment of tactical nuclear cruise missiles launched from the air or sea that are not bound by the INF Treaty or New START.

2. A guarantee that the LRSO will be developed and fielded.

3. Redeployment of nuclear gravity bombs to US Carrier Strike Groups.

4. Massive deployment of Aegis Ashore, Patriots and THAAD throughout NATO.

5. Repeated public condemnation.

6. French and British development of tactical nuclear weapons.

Azor
01-08-2017, 08:21 PM
Citing Azor in part:

Thanks for this update, I'd missed that being announced. Somewhat surprised Romania was chosen given Russian sensitivity about "NATO on our borders" and will the USAF deploy the strike aircraft to deliver the nukes? Somehow I doubt the Rumanian AF has capable aircraft, let alone the training needed.

Have you got reference(s) for this move?

The sources were rather weak, David, and I wouldn't say that Romania is a permanent home for these bombs.

They may well be permanently stationed in Western Europe or placed in reserve in the US.

However, I can't see them remaining at Incirlik given Turkey's instability.

Sources:


https://www.euractiv.com/section/global-europe/news/us-moves-nuclear-weapons-from-turkey-to-romania/

http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/08/19/no-the-u-s-is-not-moving-its-nukes-from-turkey-to-romania/

Azor
01-08-2017, 10:06 PM
Azor,

Thanks for the far from confirming links.

These are the WoTR articles I spotted. In June 2016, before the coup attempt, there was this one:https://warontherocks.com/2016/07/nuclear-weapons-in-turkey-are-destabilizing-but-not-for-the-reason-you-think/

In July 2016, after the coup, this:https://warontherocks.com/2016/07/are-nuclear-weapons-stored-in-turkey-under-threat/

Thanks David.

US nuclear deployments are classified as a rule, so while FP and WOTR have valid points, they simply don't know.

In all likelihood, the US was considering removing the bombs prior to the coup attempt and after the shootdown.

Note that these weapons may simply be withdrawn entirely. They can be re-deployed on carriers, which would be far more politically simple...

Azor
01-11-2017, 07:59 PM
Azor,

Thanks for the far from confirming links.

These are the WoTR articles I spotted. In June 2016, before the coup attempt, there was this one:https://warontherocks.com/2016/07/nuclear-weapons-in-turkey-are-destabilizing-but-not-for-the-reason-you-think/

In July 2016, after the coup, this:https://warontherocks.com/2016/07/are-nuclear-weapons-stored-in-turkey-under-threat/

Hello David,

See recent article by Paul Iddon at War is Boring: https://warisboring.com/the-pentagon-cant-rely-on-this-turkish-air-base-d7330ef3c629#.n91y4kr48

Iddon concluded that Incirlik is a, "notoriously unreliable base for the American military in a volatile region". He maintains that the US still has nuclear weapons at the base as of January 1, 2017, but does not provide any source for this detail.

To be honest, I would not be surprised if the US had secretly removed its nuclear weapons from Incirlik years ago, and well before the US-Turkish disagreements over Syria or the attempted coup.

Firstly, the US would not publicize that information due to the political ramifications of seeming to be mistrustful of Turkey and withdrawing extended deterrence.

Secondly, the procedure could have been carried out secretly as far as I can tell, over a period of weeks or months (feel free to correct me if I am mistaken).

Thirdly, another alternative would be to secretly deactivate the bombs whilst deploying others to CAWs.

davidbfpo
02-04-2017, 09:01 PM
I recently posed the questions around the US nuclear weapons @ Incirlik AFB, in south-east Turkey to a SME on such matters and below are their remarks:
The driver of having US nuclear bombs stored in Turkey has until recently been the Turks wanting re-assurance against the Russians. Indeed the other NATO states with weapons on their territory did so to keep the Turks happy and satisfied that they would be safe from Russian attack, rather than to enhance the security of the remaining NATO states. I had some dealings with officials over this issue in the mid-2000s, and it was clear that the US bombs stored in the UK had been removed at a date in that period which has never been made public, largely to keep the Turks happy.

In current circumstances I would suspect that if the US still has nuclear bombs in Turkey, they are practice ones not operational ones.

As the Turks have no obvious ability to have an instant capability to convert their F-16s and pilots into nuclear weapon vehicles, and no likelihood of the US giving the Turks access to their stores to verify the US weapons are active, or capable of being made active in a short period of time, the question of whether they are or are not active is anyone's guess. Judging by what has happened at other NATO nuclear bases, I would say they have up to the last five years all been at a very low level of readiness for use. But we are now in 2017 rather than 2010.

My judgement is that Trump may for monetary reasons chose to pull all the US nuclear weapons out of Europe within the next few weeks including those that may be in Turkey. The interesting question will be the price he will demand for doing it from Putin.Note I have moved the posts relevant to this matter from the 2017 Syrian War thread to this thread on Turkey.

OUTLAW 09
03-11-2017, 11:32 AM
Things are now escalating between EU/NATO and Turkey over the coming Erdogan instituted referendum on his new Presidential system which is a single leader dictatorship and no freedom of the press....with over 127 journalists currently in jail including a just arrested German/Turkish reporter for Die Welt....

In the last ten days this has escalated badly with Germany bluntly telling Turkey they cannot send their AKP and government officials to Germany to conduct political rallies on German soil....

This has led to a series of Turkish government statements of accusing Germany of being Nazi's and Hitler again...including Erdogan....this is inflammatory in nature and it is deliberate on the part of Erdogan as it makes he look as a hard leader to the 1.5M Turks residing in Germany.....

Merkel and her FM have bluntly told Turkey to stop the inflammatory Nazi statements...warning that it can in fact make moves against Turkey that will not benefit Turkey.....

Today a leading German politician who sits in the EU Commission openly questioned by the EU is providing Turkey with 4B Euros in aid to assist in merging into EU WHEN Erdogan does not want to and is going the opposite direction with creating an Islamic State and a single ruler and no democratic processes....BUT then his FM "demanded visa free travel to EU countries"...we were promised it...he "forgot it was to be part of the merging process and not a separate reward to Turkey...WHAT is interesting is that Turkey had actually fulfilled 24 of the 28 steps needed to merge into EU and was actually doing very well and then Erdogan simply applied the brakes and went the other direction....WHEN he suddenly was confronted with massive charges of corruption by the free Turkish press backed up with audio tapes of his corruption and the corruption of his sin...

Turkey depends economically right now on EU trade and support and yes Erdogan could jump to Russia but Russia cannot carry the financial burden of 6-9B Euros of aid and trade per year...as does EU....

THIS escalated even more this weekend when the Turkish FM wanted to go to Holland conduct political rallies for the Turkish referendum there....

WHEN it appeared he might be blocked he then threatened Holland with unnamed sanctions....

THEN the Dutch did in fact block him in travelling to Holland...they said basically you can come for official reasons and talks not no political rallies on Dutch soil...

Fighting fire with fire, still makes you a pyromaniac.
This is getting out of control!

Dutch withdraw Turkish minister's travel permission in rally dispute- CNN Turk
http://reut.rs/2mwxY1C

OUTLAW 09
03-11-2017, 11:45 AM
AND here we go....it's the Nazi's striking again.....

The Dutch are 'Nazi remnants' and "fascists"says Turkish President @RT_Erdogan.

Erdogan calling the kettle black as he is sliding Turkey into fascism of a single authoritarian leader.

BreakingNews
Turkish president #Erdogan threatens to cancel Landing Permission for #Dutch planes in #Turkey.

REMEMBEr recently when Germany critiqued him in his political rallies he held recently he would not allow even the German Minister of Defense visit her AF elements flying recce against Is from Turkey....

OUTLAW 09
03-11-2017, 12:44 PM
Wilders sees connection between decision to block Turkish FM from landing in NL and the Dutch general elections.

Typical Wilders the ultra rightist populist who was to win and now is losing badly since Trump was elected would say this....as it hurts him....

BUT he has missed the key point...many EU leaders are simply now fed up with Erdogan and are following Merkel's pushback....over the same style of Nazi statements....

NOW the Erdogan threat against Holland on their election day.....and who states the term Nazi.....

LIVE President Erdoğan on Netherlands decision for no landing permission for FM: Our people will disrupt your conspiracy on 16th April

He voiced something similar this week in his clash with Germany...for their election in SEPT....

BUT WAIT..Erdogan does not even know his own Turkish laws he has yet to change so still in effect.....

A reminder of this timely piece by @dpa_intl from last week: #Turkish election law prohibits campaigning abroad
http://dpaq.de/x5YZj
Leave it up to Germans to point out Turkish law to Erdogan....

AND yet he seems to believe he can force EU to do anything he wants to do....like visa free travel and massive Euro loans....

ANADOLU AGENCY (ENG)

@anadoluagency
Turkey summons Dutch envoy to Foreign Ministry after FM's flight permit gets canceled

OUTLAW 09
03-11-2017, 07:11 PM
Wilders sees connection between decision to block Turkish FM from landing in NL and the Dutch general elections.

Typical Wilders the ultra rightist populist who was to win and now is losing badly since Trump was elected would say this....as it hurts him....

BUT he has missed the key point...many EU leaders are simply now fed up with Erdogan and are following Merkel's pushback....over the same style of Nazi statements....

NOW the Erdogan threat against Holland on their election day.....and who states the term Nazi.....

LIVE President Erdoğan on Netherlands decision for no landing permission for FM: Our people will disrupt your conspiracy on 16th April

He voiced something similar this week in his clash with Germany...for their election in SEPT....

BUT WAIT..Erdogan does not even know his own Turkish laws he has yet to change so still in effect.....

A reminder of this timely piece by @dpa_intl from last week: #Turkish election law prohibits campaigning abroad
http://dpaq.de/x5YZj
Leave it up to Germans to point out Turkish law to Erdogan....

AND yet he seems to believe he can force EU to do anything he wants to do....like visa free travel and massive Euro loans....

ANADOLU AGENCY (ENG)

@anadoluagency
Turkey summons Dutch envoy to Foreign Ministry after FM's flight permit gets canceled

ANADOLU AGENCY (ENG)

@anadoluagency
#BREAKING Turkish family minister's vehicle intercepted while entering the Netherlands, Turkey's envoy says

UPDATE: Turkish delegation including 'Family Minister' being escorted to German border by Dutch police.

Tukrish minister is behind the building of the Turkish Consulate in Rotterdam. Police is not allowing her to get inside the Consulate.
Special intervention team of the Dutch Police is blocking the Turkish minister Sayan Kaya entering the Turkish Consulate in Rotterdam

Any well informed official in the Turkish Foreign Ministry will know this. Erdogan is deliberately provoking EU states for campaign purposes

BREAKING Turkish Foreign Ministry labels Dutch gov's treatment to Turkish officials as "hostile" act, "a first in 405 years of relations"

OUTLAW 09
03-12-2017, 09:00 AM
At the next NATO meeting....

Can the representatives from Holland and Turkey please explain to us just WTH is going on???

OUTLAW 09
03-12-2017, 11:51 AM
Turkey referendum: Riot police use water cannon and horses to disperse protesters outside Turkish consulate in Rotterdam
http://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/europe/turkey-referendum-dutch-bar-turkish-minister-from-entry-1.3007083#

In a number of the videos and photos coming out of the clearance of the demo by Dutch riot police you will notice groups of young Turkish men throwing the fascist Grey Wolf hand signs...

The Turkish Grey Wolf group is in fact a hard core 300% fascist group responsible in the 80/90s on the streets in Germany violence against those Turks who were considered to be leftist and or liberal/secular .

Grey Wolf fighters have been spotted fighting together with FSA and the Turkish Army in Syria....

So it is unusual to have Turkey call the Dutch Nazi's and fascists when they themselves are fascists...

OUTLAW 09
03-12-2017, 12:11 PM
Erdogan's hypocrisy knows no limits....

Rudaw English

@RudawEnglish
#Live: Turkish President @RT_Erdogan says #Netherlands will pay the price for setting the dogs on Turks in Netherlands.

If one looks back at the demos being conducted all across Turley originally against the Erdogan corruption and son charges..Erdogan used water cannons..dogs...roit gas and brutality against anyone in those demonstrations and they were Turks beating up on Turks.....

Not Dutch police telling Turkish rioters they must disperse before going into action...as they had no demo permit...

OUTLAW 09
03-12-2017, 12:45 PM
BREAK Erdogan: "We will teach them international diplomacy"
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/eur

Erdogan AKP protest against #Netherlands with pressing oranges and drinking juice, orange=Dutch royal color

WELL at least it is heathy and Turkey has a lot of oranges...

OUTLAW 09
03-12-2017, 03:14 PM
"At some point moral price of including Ankara in NATO, an alliance of democracies, will outweigh strat. benefits"
https://www.wsj.com/articles/ergodan-withdraws-from-the-west-1489090280#

Denmark rejects a Turkish official visit request for political rallies....

Reupping a blog on Erdogan's use of fights with the West as a tool in in electoral politics. From March... 2014
http://blogs.reuters.com/great-debate/2014/03/28/in-turkey-taking-on-west-wins-elections/#

TurkishEmbassyDC

@TurkishEmbassy
.@MFATurkey's statement regarding the relations between Turkey and the Netherlands
http://bit.ly/2mWhRLD

Çavuşoğlu, fresh from calling European countries fascist, says that they have kings and queens with powers like the presidential system

Depicts just little Turkish politicians really understand European countries with this type of argument....

NOW Erdogan is just plain stupid....Dutch and German tourists have been the backbone of the Turkish tourist industry for years and that is now about to fall to zero....

Erdoğan threatens to revoke clearance for Dutch planes after row over FM visit -
http://buff.ly/2mf3gHN

OUTLAW 09
03-12-2017, 03:42 PM
WTHeck has the Turkish leadership be drinking to much of lately?????

Pres Advisor Ertem: "Dutch firms must not be afraid of Turkey... As the EU goes towards fascism, Turkey is the safest country for firms."

OUTLAW 09
03-12-2017, 04:10 PM
WHAT is interesting is that the German and Dutch rants and activities directed against them by Erdogan started right after his last Putin visit.

Timing is extremely interesting....

davidbfpo
03-12-2017, 04:28 PM
Professor Tahir Abbas, now @ RUSI was in Turkey teaching for several years till 2016 and has this commentary on the Dutch-Turkish spat:http://tahirabbas.co.uk/index.php/dutch-turkish-spat-two-wrongs-not-make-right/

The reporting here is very poor IMHO. I do wonder if the planned AKP and President Erdogan supporting rallies are seen locally as threats to public order, with possible Kurdish / ISIS attacks and opponents of the AKP holding protests, including the PKK which has had some support in Western Europe.

Add in the wider context, especially with elections looming and the "strong arm" tactics seen in Turkey of late - Turkey's actions will not have had much support.

davidbfpo
03-12-2017, 04:57 PM
A different theme, with a documentary (47 mins), by a BBC World Service reporter, a Chechen-Jordanian:
In this outstanding investigation, journalist Murad Batal Shishani uncovers the clandestine international network of Russian assassins dispatched by the Kremlin to liquidate Russia's enemies abroad. Turkey has become a haven for Caucasian and Central Asian Islamist fighters fleeing threats at home. The killings highlight the intrusion of criminal elements into Russian security services, as well as how Istanbul is becoming a secret international battleground, as Islamists and spies flock to the city.
Link:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-39186749

OUTLAW 09
03-12-2017, 06:50 PM
"Turkish consul general lied about minister's plan & used multiple convoys in attempt to throw off police" - mayor of #Rotterdam.

OUTLAW 09
03-12-2017, 06:54 PM
Professor Tahir Abbas, now @ RUSI was in Turkey teaching for several years till 2016 and has this commentary on the Dutch-Turkish spat:http://tahirabbas.co.uk/index.php/dutch-turkish-spat-two-wrongs-not-make-right/

The reporting here is very poor IMHO. I do wonder if the planned AKP and President Erdogan supporting rallies are seen locally as threats to public order, with possible Kurdish / ISIS attacks and opponents of the AKP holding protests, including the PKK which has had some support in Western Europe.

Add in the wider context, especially with elections looming and the "strong arm" tactics seen in Turkey of late - Turkey's actions will not have had much support.

March 6th, Turkish PM: “AKP wont do elex campaign in Holland due to elex in Holland. Shouldn’t be probs there after”

Who changed decision?


21 Nov 2012, #Turkey urgently requested #NATO air defence to protect border cities: #Germany/#Netherlands/#US acted
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/briefing_note/join/2013/491475/EXPO-SEDE_SP(2013)491475_EN.pdf#

OUTLAW 09
03-12-2017, 07:03 PM
Turkey: #Erdogan's chief aide İlnur evik says #Germany has imposed an undeclared arms embargo on #Turkey while Austria openly imposed one.

Turkey: #Erdogan said today the West armed ALL terror groups in the Middle East, has evidence to prove it & West tries to deceive by lies.

Dutch PM rejects outright Turkey's demand of apology for deporting Turkish minister, reportedly saying "Are you crazy?"

Advisor to Turkish president @ikalin1: the West never got over the fact that the Turks took Istanbul (in 1453)

NETHERLANDS | Mayor of #Rotterdam, Ahmed Aboutaleb, responds to #Erdogan by asking, 'Does he know I'm mayor of a city bombed by the #Nazis?'

Turkish protestors in Holland:Protestor #1:"Bro shut up they can lock you up". Protestor #2: "What r u talkin about this not Turkey."

Turkish FM: Dutch ambassador will not be able to set foot in Turkey
http://buff.ly/2lQUoMg

OUTLAW 09
03-12-2017, 07:13 PM
BREAKING: Denmark postpones Turkish Prime Minister's visit to Copenhagen on back of Ankara's tensions with other European countries

OUTLAW 09
03-12-2017, 07:38 PM
BREAKING NEWS; Turkish flag in a building at #Dam square in central #Amsterdam. "It looks like they take over the square"

OUTLAW 09
03-13-2017, 07:01 PM
Erdoğanist columnist calls on gov’t to ‘set West on fire’ before it occupies Turkey

http://stockholmcf.org/erdoganist-columnist-calls-on-govt-to-set-west-on-fire-before-it-occupies-turkey/ …

Appears Erdogan has as much paranoia as does Putin about being invaded....

OUTLAW 09
03-13-2017, 07:03 PM
NOTICE just how the Erdogan inflammatory comments/actions towards Holland covered this up completely???

A scathing assessment of Turkey's constitutional changes by the Venice Commission:
http://www.venice.coe.int/webforms/documents/?pdf=CDL-AD(2017)005-e …

Well worth reading to fully understand where Erdogan is going...

OUTLAW 09
03-13-2017, 07:06 PM
NOTICE just how the Erdogan inflammatory comments/actions towards Holland covered this up completely???

A scathing assessment of Turkey's constitutional changes by the Venice Commission:
http://www.venice.coe.int/webforms/documents/?pdf=CDL-AD(2017)005-e …

Well worth reading to fully understand where Erdogan is going...

Turkey's biggest foreign direct investor is #Netherlands, according to official data.

OUTLAW 09
03-13-2017, 07:10 PM
Hypocrisy at best: #Turkey violates Vienna convention by systematically denying consular services to critics abroad

http://stockholmcf.org/turkish-govt-systematically-denies-consular-services-to-critics-abroad/

OUTLAW 09
03-13-2017, 07:57 PM
AFP news agency‏Verifizierter Account @AFP

#UPDATE Erdogan accuses Merkel of 'supporting terrorists'

Merkel spox: "Chancellor doesn't have the intention to participate in this contest of provocations. [...] Accusations are obviously absurd."


Ankara (AFP) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday accused German Chancellor Angela Merkel of "supporting terrorists", in a spiralling row with EU states after the blocking of poll rallies by ministers.

"Mrs Merkel, why are you hiding terrorists in your country?... Why are you not doing anything?" Erdogan said in an interview with A-Haber television, accusing Berlin of not responding to 4,500 dossiers sent by Ankara on terror suspects.

"Mrs Merkel, you are supporting terrorists," he added.

Erdogan said Germany, which Turkey has long accused of harbouring Kurdish militants and wanted suspects from the failed July 15 coup, was "giving support to terror in a ruthless way".

He also lambasted Merkel for her public backing of Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte in the diplomatic crisis sparked by The Hague's refusal to let Turkish ministers hold rallies in the country ahead of an April 16 referendum on expanding Erdogan's powers.

German authorities had also last week blocked rallies from taking place, infuriating Ankara.

Referring to the developments across Europe in recent days, Erdogan reiterated his controversial comparison with the Third Reich.

"Nazism, we can call this Neo-nazism. A new Nazism tendency," he said.

A proErdogan commenter from Turkey gets into the act as well....

Nmık Osmanlı‏ @Jon_Namik 57 Min.vor 57 Minuten
@AFP We know it for 20 years. Germany supports PKK , DHKPC and other marksist terorists against Turkey. They do it in coordination with CIA

OUTLAW 09
03-13-2017, 08:29 PM
BREAKING: Turkish President Erdogan says will go to European Court of Human Rights over Netherlands Dispute.

Not exactly sure how he will do this as it lays within the realm of each nation state on how they handle diplomatic personnel.....

OUTLAW 09
03-14-2017, 08:33 AM
Turkey says EU exercising democracy selectively, wrong to stand by Netherlands
http://reut.rs/2mHp1CQ

BUT WAIT...Turkey under Erdogan is this flaming symbol of true and perfect democracy????

New York Times World

@nytimesworld
April vote in Turkey "will be the first unfair — and at least partially unfree — election" there since 1950 -analyst
http://nyti.ms/2mDxpS1

THIS is exactly what Erdogan is attempting through his raging Nazi statements to deflect from....

OUTLAW 09
03-14-2017, 08:47 AM
Turkey suspends high-level diplomatic ties with Dutch, mulls EU immigration deal review

"Ankara’s agreement with the EU to help hold back a flood of refugees has ended, as far as Turkey is concerned"
http://www.rferl.org/a/turkey-netherlands-dispute-diplomatic-ties-cut/28367437.html#

BUT WAIT...Erdogan gets 3B Euros annually for this....and his economy is actually tanking so he cuts off his nose to spite himself?????

Interestingly enough...Erdogan is driving an interesting conversation within EU countries with high Turkish populations such as Germany...Denmark..Holland etc...

They have actually granted long term Turkish residents the right to a second passport of their country where they reside thus many Turks can claim two passports thus related EU benefits and visa free travel...

Now the discussion begins...if one who holds a Dutch passport now answered to Erdogan and riots inside Holland does he need his Dutch passport?

Erdogan is total unaware of his impact on his fellow Turks residing outside of Turkey....nor do they realize that by openly supporting Erdogan they also incur certain risks....

OUTLAW 09
03-14-2017, 09:35 AM
Syrian journalist in Turkey survives second assassination attempt
https://cpj.org/x/68d0#

OUTLAW 09
03-14-2017, 09:42 AM
TASS

@tassagency_en
Turkey seeks Russian loan to buy #S400 systems
http://tass.com/defense/935338

WHY because Turkey is just about broke.....due largely to Erdogan's actions since the coup and his bashing EU....he cannot hope now from any EU assistance until his tone changes and he will not change that tone thus no money will flow....

OUTLAW 09
03-14-2017, 10:16 AM
NAF tanker o/h #Israel (T235) Guess he won't be overflying #Turkey 2day
#TurkeyNetherlands crisis

OUTLAW 09
03-14-2017, 04:32 PM
Rotterdam Mayor Aboutaleb says he was taken aback by Turkish minister bringing personal guards and it wasn't clear if the 12 men were armed.

Situation at Turkish consulate Rotterdam was "so intense, complex" mayor gave police permission to shoot if needed

So exactly why did a Turkish Family minister travelling supposedly from German travel with armed guards.....

OUTLAW 09
03-14-2017, 04:42 PM
Erdogan blames Dutch for Srebrenica massacre as diplomatic spat escalates
http://ow.ly/4TFV309TATL

In reaction of Erdogan's blame for Srebrenica, Dutch twitting blame on #Turkey for Armenia

OUTLAW 09
03-15-2017, 01:03 PM
Rotterdam Mayor Aboutaleb says he was taken aback by Turkish minister bringing personal guards and it wasn't clear if the 12 men were armed.

Situation at Turkish consulate Rotterdam was "so intense, complex" mayor gave police permission to shoot if needed

So exactly why did a Turkish Family minister travelling supposedly from German travel with armed guards.....

Appears that yes even Erdogan does not fully know his own Turkish election laws which have not be negated by his emergency decrees.....

The relevant section of the law: Article 94/A of the general election law, explicitly bans campaigning abroad or in foreign dipl. missions.

OSCE in November 2015, noted it was "legally prohibited" to campaign outside Turkey and doing so was an "administrative violation."

OUTLAW 09
03-15-2017, 01:05 PM
67% of Germans polled yesterday think EU should stop all discussions with Turkey about joining the EU...and end the association agreements until such time as Turkey decides to behave like a democratic state....

OUTLAW 09
03-15-2017, 01:15 PM
BREAKING Erdogan says 'spirit of fascism running wild on streets of Europe'

BUT WAIT...one of his greatest internal and external supporting groups is the fascist Turkish Grey Wolves'.....

As someone who is sitting and working in Berlin/Brandenburg Germany I have yet to see "fascists running wild through the streets"...although there are a lot of dual German/Turkish citizens "walking" the streets of Berlin....many who owe allegiance to the Turkish group Grey Wolf....a "fascist group" by anyone's definition....

OUTLAW 09
03-15-2017, 01:17 PM
Looks like #Turkish hackers took over @Europarl_EN twitter account. Things getting tenser between #Europe and #Turkey

OUTLAW 09
03-15-2017, 06:46 PM
Turkey blocks some cooperation with NATO partners as EU row escalates
http://reut.rs/2mP3W9y

OUTLAW 09
03-15-2017, 07:25 PM
BREAKING: Turkey foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu says Ankara may cancel 6bn Euro deal with EU to stem flow of refugees -

OUTLAW 09
03-16-2017, 09:08 AM
BREAKING — Turkey on Netherlands: There is no difference between Dutch liberals and 'fascist' Geert Wilders.

OUTLAW 09
03-16-2017, 01:28 PM
CNN Trk ENG

@CNNTURK_ENG
#BREAKING Erdoğan blasts headscarf ruling by European Court,says they started clash btw Cross&Crescent, there is no other way of putting it

WHAT Erdogan is not saying is that the EC ruled on two instances and in one case ruled against the Belgium female plaintiff's wearing of the headscarf and in the second case ruled against the French company and for the female plaintiff right to wear the headscarf.....

WHAT it did rule is that companies do in fact have the right to dictate a common dress code and if they rule out wearing of religious symbols then all symbols must be restricted not one favored over another...as well as if the headscarf wearer might also in the public eye when doing her job which might offend customers of the company....

On the whole a well balanced EC decision...balancing both the rights of a company and the rights of an individual...

OUTLAW 09
03-16-2017, 01:35 PM
Europe headed for 'religion wars' despite Wilders' stumble, Turkish minister says
http://reut.rs/2mxiZ5c

"Religious wars" but he did not call for a jihad...

For the purists, "Yakında Avrupa'da din savaşları da başlar, başlayacak." -- the missing word is "jihad" (cihad in Turkish)

The really interesting thing is this type of Turkish rhetoric is actually turning off Turkish citizens living and working in other EU countries as they know it to be simply false...LARGE numbers of dual Turkish/Dutch citizens voted in record numbers for the current Dutch PM...for example.

THE REASON I POINT THIS OUT.....

This is the comment coming from basically a right wing neo Nazi fascist blogsite....that even US Congressman King often quotes in his tweets...as well as Brietbart.co and Infowars...both US based right wing white nationalist blogsites...

Voice_of_Europe
How many warnings do we need???
Turkish minister claims 'holy wars will soon begin in Europe'

NOW count the days until Breitbart.com and Infowars picks this comment up....

OUTLAW 09
03-16-2017, 01:48 PM
Better articles for background on Grey Wolves.
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/para/grey-wolves.htm#

https://consortiumnews.com/2015/12/16/on-the-trail-of-turkeys-terrorist-grey-wolves-2/#

BTW...the Trump and his merry band of right wingers using the term "Deep State" do it wrongly and really do not understand it comes out of Turkey.....

That moment you realize your foreign minister is publicly supporting a fascist organization. Turkish PM using the GW hand sign....

Erdogan has also been photographed using the various well known GW hand signs as well recently.....

OUTLAW 09
03-16-2017, 05:52 PM
Turkey deports Dutch cows

Turkey’s ongoing spat with the Netherlands is fast descending into the absurd. Members of Turkey’s Association#of#Red Meat Producers loaded 40 Dutch Holstein cows onto a truck and sent them packing to Holland to protest Dutch authorities' refusal to allow Turkish officials to campaign#on Dutch soil for the constitutional referendum#that would further empower Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan

http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/03/turkey-netherlands-dispute-animals-sanctions-europe.html#ixzz4bVpiaf8H

OUTLAW 09
03-17-2017, 08:24 AM
On April 16, the Turkish parliamentary republic, founded in 1923, may be dissolved and replaced with an autocracy

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/democracy-post/wp/2017/03/16/turkey-is-about-to-take-another-step-toward-dictatorship/? (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/democracy-post/wp/2017/03/16/turkey-is-about-to-take-another-step-toward-dictatorship/?utm_term=.51c86996b2bb#)

OUTLAW 09
03-17-2017, 09:50 AM
Spat between Russia & Turkey after reports that Ankara could introduce a 130% fee on import of russian wheat
http://www.vedomosti.ru/business/news/2017/03/17/681631-v-rosselhoznadzore-schitayut-nevigodnimi#

OUTLAW 09
03-18-2017, 01:09 PM
Excellent @bild survey showing how many(most?) Turks in #Germany reject #Erdogan,bt his supporters are louder @tanit
http://www.bild.de/bild-plus/news/inland/tuerkei/tuerken-geigen-erdogan-die-meinung-50860108,jsRedirectFrom=conversionToLogin.bild.htm l#

OUTLAW 09
03-18-2017, 01:10 PM
Spat between Russia & Turkey after reports that Ankara could introduce a 130% fee on import of russian wheat
http://www.vedomosti.ru/business/news/2017/03/17/681631-v-rosselhoznadzore-schitayut-nevigodnimi#

This was a response to the Russians not pulling the sanctions off of Turkish tomatoes....

OUTLAW 09
03-18-2017, 06:34 PM
Boss of #Germany's foreign intel service BND told @DerSPIEGEL there's no evidence of Glen being behind #Turkey coup
pic.twitter.com/ZeNrw7MT3m

OUTLAW 09
03-22-2017, 03:39 PM
Erdogan just threatened the safety of every person in Europe

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/turkey-erdogan-germany-netherlands-warning-europeans-not-walk-safely-a7642941.html#

OUTLAW 09
03-23-2017, 06:49 PM
The world is changing - Russia's S-400s will be accompanied by Russian 'specialists' - in a NATO country! #Turkey
https://twitter.com/tassagency_en/status/844980819932303360#

OUTLAW 09
03-28-2017, 09:02 AM
MIT hands BND a list of Glenists in Germany with surveillance data. Berlin is furious, start investigating MIT
http://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/e...iert-1.3438995

OUTLAW 09
04-04-2017, 07:08 AM
TURKEY | #German intel' expert says #Erdogan was behind the #coup according to the reports by CIA and BND.

NOW the Trump FP view on Turkey is again exactly what????

OUTLAW 09
04-04-2017, 07:08 AM
Purge of huge number of pilots have left #TAF crippled, RUS Aircraft roam freely in TUR Airspace.
https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/breaking-russian-jets-enter-turkish-airspace-pound-islamist-rebels-rural-idlib/#

davidbfpo
04-06-2017, 11:40 AM
A review article from Open Democracy, with a sub-title:
How did Turkish military culture transform under the rule of AKP? And what will be the impact of the failed coup attempt on the results of the upcoming referendum in Turkey?Link:https://www.opendemocracy.net/arab-awakening/hakki-goker-onen/reconsidering-turkish-military-culture-and-secularism-after-coup-att? (https://www.opendemocracy.net/arab-awakening/hakki-goker-onen/reconsidering-turkish-military-culture-and-secularism-after-coup-att?utm_source=Daily+Newsletter&utm_campaign=12a5d99b13-DAILY_NEWSLETTER_MAILCHIMP&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_717bc5d86d-12a5d99b13-407365113)

OUTLAW 09
04-16-2017, 05:53 PM
Referencing the just completed election.....

Ballot observer: "In Istanbul's Sisli, we're just taking the ballots to the Board. On TV, they're reporting our precinct counted"

The main opposition party says it has concerns over 37% of ballot boxes containing 2.5 million votes.

Meral Aksener: Supreme Election Board's recognition of unstamped ballot papers as valid votes is a great scandal

Typical AKP ballot stuffing ......

With millions of illegal voting papers made 'legal' by AKP diktat, this is a coup by #Erdogan #AKP in #Turkey!

This footage from Sincan of #Ankara: Voting sheets authenticated after the cast in violation of the rules that require advance validation.

Administration is stamping fake votes for making them legal. Because unstamped votes will cause trouble no matter what the board says.

To explain: state media notes that almost all ballot boxes have been opened, opp counters that many individual ballots aren't counted yet

KEY to voter fraud ongoing in Turkey
Electoral law stipulates all ballots unstamped by district electoral board & ballot board are invalid. Law reversed today

Supreme Election Board changed the ballot registration rules after voting started; the change also violates clear wording of Law N 298

Journo: "Why did you feel the need to accept unstamped ballots?"
Electoral Board chair: "There was no need. We just had to."

OUTLAW 09
04-16-2017, 06:01 PM
THIS is extremely important if the trend continues.....

Supreme Election Board says 76% of ballots opened, Yes vote is 50,36%.

IF Erdogan does not pull in more than 51% and he is losing all the major large Turkish cities especially Istanbul he will be practically unable to move his agenda forward in the ways he assumed he could......

This is a very big deal......

Erdogan has officially lost the referendum in Istanbul.....
Listen to Istanbul just now. Clanging pots. An act of protest used in #Turkey before and during Gezi protests

OUTLAW 09
04-16-2017, 06:20 PM
9pm: Erdogan has claimed victory.

The official election board clearly still counting many votes.

State news agency’s vote count stuck at 98%


Suddenly results are stopped flowing.
Whole country is waiting.
Turkish Elections..

Whoa.

OUTLAW 09
04-16-2017, 06:24 PM
Turkey opposition #CHP & 'no' leader #Aksener say they do not accept this result, challenging validity of some votes.

This could and will get messy.

Read this thread by @nblaser18 to understand one of the central concerns being raised by opposition in today's Turkey referendum

Declaring a win, Erdogan making 'Yes' a fait accompli while opponents claim here that only 76 pct of votes counted:
http://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/siyaset/722174/CHP_li_Yarkadas_YSK_nin_son_verilerini_acikladi.ht ml#

Video from Ankara's Sincan. The chair polling clerk is officiating ballots *after* polls closed, during counting. This is illegal.

HDP Spokesman Baydemir: Figures from at least 668 signed "minutes" we have don't match with those of the Election Board. We worry its more.

OUTLAW 09
04-16-2017, 06:37 PM
Turkish election board website goes offline, it reportedly stops sharing early results with opposition parties

OUTLAW 09
04-16-2017, 07:14 PM
The number of unstamped ballots in Turkey is roughly equal to the margin by which “Yes” prevailed.
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-referendum-results-partial-idUSKBN17I0IS?mod=related#

At this point, the only certain result of #TurkeyReferendum is legitimacy crisis for the electoral system & #Erdoğan's presidential regime.

OUTLAW 09
04-16-2017, 07:20 PM
Erdogan once said democracy, for him, is a bus ride. "Once I get to my stop, I’m getting off". Did he just arrive there?

Erdoğan looks like he's lost, with absolutely no conviction or pleasure in his acceptance statement

ACTUALLY he has failed.......he was shooting for over 60% and with 51% he can barely move his agenda forward and roughly 50% voted against him..EVEN with a faked coup and locking up his entire opposition.....

OUTLAW 09
04-16-2017, 07:32 PM
Expectations after a "yes" campaign win in #Turkey: A new operation in #Syria, similar to Euphrates Shield.

OUTLAW 09
04-16-2017, 07:46 PM
Arabs who really believe in democracy used to look up to Turkey as example of how democracy can work in a Muslim country. This is over now.

Night of the Turkish Delights. Erdogan's men stuffed ballot boxes, allowed illegal votes, disallowed legal ones. Turkish democracy is over.

This is the first time since 1946 there are serious allegations about the fairness and legitimacy of voting today in Turkey.

OUTLAW 09
04-16-2017, 08:01 PM
Oppo HDP's @BaydemirOsman: Discrepancies in vote counts, validating unofficial ballots violated rules, govt rushed result to bury objections

BREAKING: Erdogan says critics "belittling" result of presidential powers referendum "shouldn't try, it will be in vain." - AP

Erdogan worked systematically to silence Kurdish voices before referendum. In an election this close... it mattered a lot.

Police intervenes to break up crowd in front of Election Board headquarters in Ankara.

OUTLAW 09
04-17-2017, 09:00 AM
You cannot make this up......!!!!!

ANADOLU AGENCY (ENG)‏
Verified account
#@anadoluagency

#BREAKING Electoral board head: Unsealed vote envelopes were also used in past elections

THEN they even stated they cannot tell just how many "unstamped official ballots were allowed to be counted against Turkish election Laws changed 30 minutes in the ballot counting..

Estimates range up to 2.5M were illegally allowed into the count...the winning amount of votes was 1M...thus ensuing Erdogan a win....

OUTLAW 09
04-17-2017, 10:53 AM
Reuters Top News

@Reuters
JUST IN: Turkey's pro-Kurdish HDP opposition says the successful challenge of 3 million unstamped ballots could change vote outcome

Actually if the Election Committee refuses to recount and toss the unstamped votes and are challenged in Turkish Court using the current very valid Election Laws that have not be suddenly changed ...the Court would be hard pressed to not rule in the favor of HDP....even if it means anger coming from Erdogan/AKP and because if they rubberstamp then it well truly reveal that the Court's simply a farce in the eyes of the roughly 50% who voted against Erdogan........

OUTLAW 09
04-17-2017, 05:13 PM
BREAKING: Turkish President Erdogan rejects OSCE vote monitors' findings, tells group to 'know your place.'

OUTLAW 09
04-18-2017, 11:45 AM
Main Opp CHParty Leader Kılıdaroğlu speaking #live, attacking Turkish Election Council, asking if they are offered to be MPs in next elex

EU calls for investigation into alleged vote rigging in Turkeys referendum
http://buff.ly/2pNM919

Erdoğan slams OSCE, saying Turkey wont recognize its report on referendum
http://buff.ly/2pMGiJr

SO is Turkey now under Erdogan going to drop out of OSCE and be asked to leave as a member of the EU Council....AND they are a PACE member as well.

What/who made Turkey's election board to change mind in two hours about unauthorized ballots? First they rejected but 2 hours later accepted

PACE observer: Referendum was neither fair nor free
http://buff.ly/2ptPgyU

Hrriyet Daily News

@HDNER
Ankara slams international election observers criticism of referendum result
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ankara-slams-international-election-observers-criticism-of-referendum-result.aspx?pageID=238&nID=112140&NewsCatID=510

OUTLAW 09
04-18-2017, 11:46 AM
IMPORTANT NOTE
Trump call delights #Erdogan supporters as legitimising victory, dismays critics after OSCE report&anti-west tirade.

EU/US ARE DEFINITELY NOT on same page

REMEMBER this is the same Donald that first stated NATO/EU are obsolete and then praised them recently. AND that he was going to work within NATO.....BUT WAIT only if they paid the US money and fought IS/AQ....which they have been doing since 2003?????

OUTLAW 09
04-18-2017, 11:52 AM
Erdoğan offers prayer of gratitude in İstanbul mosque reminiscent of Ottoman sultans
http://buff.ly/2pu27kB

Preliminary statistical study of voting patterns in #turkeyreferundum strongly suggest Kurdish votes stolen by govt

http://www.intellinews.com/academic-never-akp-vote-disappeared-in-turkey-s-referendum-119719#

OUTLAW 09
04-18-2017, 11:55 AM
No idea how anyone could think it's a good idea to send pro-#Kremlin #PKK #YPG #DNR @AndrejHunko as a #TurkeyReferendum @PACE_News observer.

OUTLAW 09
04-18-2017, 12:08 PM
Hrriyet Daily News

@HDNER
Turkish bar association says electoral board violated law during referendum
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-bar-association-says-electoral-board-violated-law-during-referendum.aspx?pageID=238&nID=112145&NewsCatID=338

Ankara: Hundreds gathered in front of the Supreme Election Board to submit referendum cancelation petitions.

Erdogan is going to have a hard time with this statement .....
BREAKING: Main opposition party CHP leader @kilicdarogluk: The NO votes in the actual polling boxes are more than 50%.

EU urges #Ankara to open 'transparent investigations' into vote results @AFP

davidbfpo
04-18-2017, 07:31 PM
The Soufan Group's brief ends with:
The modern Turkish model—previously widely lauded for its gradual move towards liberal democracy—now appears to have been supplanted by a model that increasingly resembles a modern-day incarnation of a sultan-style government.
Link:http://www.soufangroup.com/tsg-intelbrief-turkeys-clean-break-with-the-eu/

Now will Turkey decide to loosen controls on "refugees" not leaving and encourage them to depart for the EU? I am sure a few will remind him many are fellow Muslims.

davidbfpo
04-28-2017, 08:25 PM
A commentary by Professor Tahir Abbas, now at RUSI (London), but who had worked and taught in Turkey for fourteen years beforehand. He ends with:
One thing is for sure. As transformation is necessary in the light of globalisation and as power globally steadily shifts from the West back to the East, Turkey remains at the centre of the world.
Link:http://tahirabbas.co.uk/index.php/turkish-politics-and-society-today/

davidbfpo
05-03-2017, 08:28 PM
A single sourced Turkish press report that indicates a development: 'Turkey captures PKK-linked TAK's leader in northern Iraq's Irbil'. A report that indicates it was not a joint action i.e. with KRG / Kurdish help, rather just a Turkish one.
Link:https://www.dailysabah.com/war-on-terror/2017/05/03/turkey-captures-pkk-linked-taks-leader-in-northern-iraqs-irbil

SWJ Blog
09-23-2017, 04:20 AM
How Strongly is NATO Ally Turkey Pivoting to Russia and Iran? (http://smallwarsjournal.com/blog/how-strongly-is-nato-ally-turkey-pivoting-to-russia-and-iran)

Entry Excerpt:



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davidbfpo
12-31-2017, 08:30 PM
Hamid Hussain, our occasional contributor, has an article on the struggle between the elected government, the "deep state" and the Turkish military. It is on the attachment due the size (5 pgs).

He concludes:
There is now an obvious choice for Erdogan. A transparent trial of the accused officers and appropriate punishments will strengthen institutions, but using this failed coup attempt to side-line all opposition and embarking on a witch hunt will surely backfire. He could usher in a new era of a professional and non-political TSK or try to fill the ranks with unqualified partisans. If he follows the former course, there is a chance that TSK will recover over a decade or two but if he follows the later course, then Turkey will see instability and potential chaos for a long time.

davidbfpo
01-03-2018, 05:14 PM
Hat tip to WoTR for this article https://warontherocks.com/2018/01/old-dogs-new-tricks-urban-warfare-turkeys-war-pkk/ which dissects what happened when the PKK opted to fight in Turkish cities (it has been cross-posted on the Urban Operations thread).

The authors have observations on the wider impact on urban operations, for strategy and operations. Near the end:
This dynamic suggests armed groups might choose to target cities even when their chances of military success are slim, that is, if they believe that they can frame the urban battle in ways that will help them achieve their long-term strategic objectives.

davidbfpo
04-28-2018, 10:28 AM
Taken from an article by Hamid Hussain, a SWJ contributor:
“In Turkey, we have marriage of Islam and democracy. The child of this marriage is secularism. This child gets sick from time to time. The Turkish armed forces are the doctor which saves the child. Depending on how sick the child is, we administer the necessary medicine to make sure the child recuperates”. General Cevik Bir; former Deputy Chief of General Staff of Turkish army

Turkish Armed Forces (known by the Turkish initials TSK - Turk Silahli Kuvvetleri) have gone through a dramatic change in the last two years. In July 2016, a faction of TSK tried and failed to bring back TSK on the center stage of Turkey. This failed coup attempt was the result of rapidly deteriorating relations between ruling Justice and Development Party (known by its Turkish initials AKP - Adalat ve Kalkinma Partisi) and TSK spanning over fifteen years.



TSK assigned itself the role of the guardian of the state and Kemalist tradition. TSK had a key role in making decisions about national security, economy and foreign relations. Supreme Military Council (known by its Turkish initials YAS – Yuksek Askari Shura) was the instrument used for military’s dominance. Civilian bureaucracy and judiciary dominated by secular elite were junior partners of TSK.

In 1997, TSK forced removal of Islamist Prime Minister Necmettin Erbakan what was later called ‘post-modern coup’. In 2000, AKP came to power and its leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan gradually increased his power while avoiding direct conflict with powerful army. There was now conflict between two power centers. AKP didn’t have qualified cadres to control state bureaucracy. Erdogan made an alliance with cleric Fethullah Gulen. Gulen’s organization Hizmet has been focused on excellence in education for three decades. Gulenist sympathizers joined state bureaucracy especially police and judiciary. Repeated electoral successes of AKP with control of legislature combined with penetration of state structure by Gulenist sympathizers strengthened the civilian hand. They now felt confident to confront TSK and snatch back some powers.

Gulenist sympathizers in police and judiciary embarked on an ambitious plan of state restructuring by clipping the wings of TSK. Several former and later serving officers were accused of plotting coups. Hundreds of officers were charged, arrested and prosecuted in two notorious alleged conspiracies; Ergenekon and Balyoz (Sledgehammer). Later, hundreds of officers including high ranking officers were convicted and sentenced to long prison sentences. TSK was gradually losing its internal cohesion due to emergence of various factions. Senior officers lost the confidence of junior officers for failing to protect officer corps from real and imagined conspiracies propagated by pro AKP and pro Gulenist media houses and large-scale arrests of officers.

A group of second and third tier TSK officers decided to strike before Erdogan further clipped TSK wings in upcoming August 2016 YAS meeting. Elements from major army formations, special forces, army headquarters, air force and helicopter pilots and naval officers were involved in the coup attempt. TSK senior brass was not in the loop. Headquarter of coup plotters was at Akinci air force base.

On 15 July afternoon, a helicopter pilot Osman Karaca went to MIT headquarters to warn about impending coup. MIT chief Hakan Fidan informed head of military police and later army chief General Hulusi Akar. General Akar issued orders banning military flights over Turkish air space and prohibited movement of armored vehicles. This upset the original coup launch time of 3 am July 16. Coup plotters moved the time to 8:30 pm July 15. This proved to be a fatal error as streets were bustling and Erdogan was able to rally his supporters. Major General Mehmet Disli of strategic planning branch at General headquarters went to Akar’s office informing him that coup was in motion and asking him to take charge. When angry Akar refused, he was arrested and flown to Akinci air base.

Coup plotters bombed Turkish parliament building and police headquarters. Erdogan made the courageous move of flying back to Istanbul and asking his supporters to come out in streets. Protestors confronted soldiers on the streets. Coup attempt failed in few hours and government forces quickly restored order. Erdogan on landing at Istanbul airport declared that ‘if we accept that everything happens for a reason, then this uprising is a gift from God to us because this will be the reason to cleanse our army’. He truly cleansed the armed forces by sacking and arresting thousands of officers and Non-Commissioned Officers (NCOs). Almost half of flag rank officers of Turkish army, air force and navy were sacked.

Deeply suspicious of the army, Erdogan closed all military colleges and academies and transferred several military institutions including hospitals and business interests of TSK to civilian control. To counter military’s coercive power, he has strengthened police special forces, paramilitary forces and civilian intelligence. In Syria, during recent operations against Syrian Kurds, army was used only initially especially tanks but later police special forces and Gendarmerie were deployed on Syrian territory. Erdogan has also expanded the role of private security contractors to fill the security gap. He hired retired Brigadier Adnan Tanriverdi as his military advisor. Adnan was retired in 1997 on suspicion of having Islamist leanings. In 2012, he started a private security firm SADAT.

In the aftermath of the coup, Erdogan had two choices. A transparent trial of accused officers and strict punishments or using failed coup attempt to silence all opposition. Unfortunately, he embarked on the later course with large scale sacking and arrest of not only army personnel but civilian bureaucracy, police and judiciary. In addition, all opposition including Gulenist sympathizers and Kurds are on the receiving end. Hundreds of academics were sacked and many journalists have been arrested and large media houses taken over by the government. This has divided Turkey right in the middle. Half of Turkey hates and other half loves Erdogan. This is a recipe for long term instability. In this environment, it is inevitable that this polarization will affect TSK. It will take more than a decade to restructure TSK on professional grounds while at the same time keep it under civilian control.