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Iraq
Worsening situation in Iraq should be taken seriously: Turkish PM
2014-06-16
Waving a red flag in-front of the Turkish army has not shown itself to be a good long term survival strategy.
ANKARA -- Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Current Prime Minister of Turkey, ex-footballer and reciter of poetry
on Sunday expressed concern over the deteriorating situation in northern Iraq after Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) militants began to attack Mosul's Telafer district where thousands of Turkmen are believed to live, local Daily News said.

"The developments in Telafer are something that cannot be underestimated. As is known, Telafer is an area mainly inhabited by Turkmen. Almost half of the Turkmen there are Sunni, but the other half are Shia," Erdogan said during a rally in Turkey's Trabzon on Sunday.
Big thugs driving a technical with an ISIL flag stop you on the street. "Are you Sunni or Shia?" I think I know what my answer would be.
The prime minister said that Turkey is highly vigilant against the development of the situation and prepared for any step to cope with it.
Where is that big green water wheel?
His statement came just few hours after the Turkish Foreign Ministry warned that the crisis in Iraq had gained a dimension of "sectarian clashes"
Really
and urged its citizens to leave the country as soon as possible.

Turkish media said that at least five Turkish citizens had been killed after ISIL launched an attack in the Telafer district on Sunday.

ISIL militants captivated 31 Turkish truck drivers on Tuesday after they captured Mosul. On Wednesday they took control of the Turkish consulate, kidnapping 49 staff and their family members, including the consul-general.
I would take the capture of my embassy as a hint that I should skeedaddle.
Posted by:Squinty

#17   OP, rehabilitate. I think, maybe altho both make sense.
Posted by: Shipman   2014-06-16 20:26  

#16  The Turks may take a page out of the Russian's play book and "repatriate" a few of their generals for the duration.
Posted by: Old Patriot   2014-06-16 16:58  

#15  We all know that it is possible to have a sound military even when its command in chief is an idiot.
Posted by: Ebbereling Hitler3100   2014-06-16 16:31  

#14  That's what I thought, Pappy. Thanks.
Posted by: trailing wife   2014-06-16 16:03  

#13  Would that include the thoughts behind advising their civilian lord and master whether to stick or go, Pappy?

Conceivably. However, given that the leadership was picked more for political reliability than military acumen...
Posted by: Pappy   2014-06-16 14:10  

#12  A contrary view of the Turkish Brigades(s) in Korea by (surprise!) a Greek source. There is certainly evidence of a ginned up mythos, but it looks like they fought as well as could be expected for green troops.

Posted by: Shipman   2014-06-16 12:10  

#11   The questionable will be more on mid to long term strategy.

Would that include the thoughts behind advising their civilian lord and master whether to stick or go, Pappy?
Posted by: trailing wife   2014-06-16 11:54  

#10   How will this affect the army's effectiveness in the current situation?

Depends. Simple straight forward ops should be okay. I suspect the lower-level leadership has not been affected. The questionable will be more on mid to long term strategy.
Posted by: Pappy   2014-06-16 09:56  

#9  My brother-in-law served in the Marines in this "police action." He once expanded upon this talent the Turks have with knives--not pretty.
Posted by: JohnQC   2014-06-16 09:30  

#8  Don't call me Shirley.
Posted by: Besoeker   2014-06-16 08:25  

#7  Shirley, TW, that sort of insight is all over the media, right? Is Nightline still on the air? Teds Koppel would be discussing that sort of thing, no? Good questions, tho...
Posted by: Bobby   2014-06-16 08:06  

#6  Question that I couldn't figure out in the middle of the night:

Thanks to Prime Minister Erdogan, a significant number of Turkish senior officers are either on trial, in jail, or summarily retired. How will this affect the army's effectiveness in the current situation? By this I include dealing with the demands of the government, choosing objectives, strategizing, and all the rest that the kind of officer that got on the wrong side of this government would have done. Thanking you in advance, etc.
Posted by: trailing wife   2014-06-16 07:45  

#5  Cute, Besoeker. :-)
Posted by: trailing wife   2014-06-16 06:18  

#4  The Champ is taking events in Iraq seriously. He skipped the 'back nine' yesterday.
Posted by: Besoeker   2014-06-16 03:11  

#3  Turkey = China = has nowhere or no place to expand its geopol sphere of influence, wid or widout Globalist Obama, + where Turkey can it will run into rival Iran andor the Russians.

* OTOH see DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > [CNN] VIDEO: ISIS: "WE WILL RAISE OUR FLAG IN TEHRAN".

Thats one way for Hard Boyz to acquire NucMats + LRBMS.

Ankara? Instanbul?

* SAME > IRAQ IMPLOSION COULD REDRAW MIDDLE EAST BOUNDARIES.
Posted by: JosephMendiola   2014-06-16 03:09  

#2  Northern Syria may just become a buffer area, occupied by the Turkish Army. ISIS irregulars don't stand up so well in a direct fire fight with a fairly modern and trained force - and the Turks may still have just that.
Posted by: OldSpook   2014-06-16 02:30  

#1  Yeah, the Turks are looking for an excuse to settle a few scores with the Kurds but will whack a few ISIL hard boys as a warm up.

Don't screw with the Turks. The ChiComs learned that lesson in Korea and the Turkish response left even our Marines awe-struck at their effectiveness with knives.
Posted by: Bill Clinton   2014-06-16 01:25  

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