Editing Turkish Armed Forces (section)

==Today==
[[File:Turkey-1658_(2215850337).jpg|thumb|Turkish soldiers guards at the [[Anıtkabir]] Mausoleum.]]
Publicly accessible audit by the [[Court of Accounts (Turkey)|Court of Accounts]] in 2023 suggests that the Turkish Armed Forces consists of 210,989 military staff in active service and 121,161 in reserve duties, aggregating a total of 332,150.<ref name="personnel">{{Cite web |title=MİLLİ SAVUNMA BAKANLIĞI : T.C. Sayıştay Başkanlığı |url=https://www.sayistay.gov.tr/reports/NrQl9kNYyJ-milli-savunma-bakanligi |access-date=2024-12-21 |website=www.sayistay.gov.tr}}</ref> The term reserve describes those in mandatory service under officer, NCO, and enlisted positions. By a 2016 restructure, the [[Gendarmerie General Command]] and the [[Coast Guard Command (Turkey)|Coast Guard Command]] were subordinated to the Ministry of Interior and therefore, their personnel count is not included in the Turkish Armed Forces.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-05-28 |title=MSB, jandarmayı geri istiyor, İçişleri, "vazgeçmem" diyor. Jandarma, neden paylaşılamıyor? Emekli Jandarma Albay Ergen anlattı |url=https://www.indyturk.com/node/365711/haber/msb-jandarmay%C4%B1-geri-istiyor-i%CC%87%C3%A7i%C5%9Fleri-vazge%C3%A7mem-diyor-jandarma-neden |access-date=2024-12-21 |website=Independent Türkçe |language=tr}}</ref>

Turkey was a Level 3 contributor to the [[F-35 Lightning II|Joint Strike Fighter]] (JSF) programme.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.defenselink.mil/Releases/Release.aspx?ReleaseID=3417|title=DoD, Turkey sign Joint Strike Fighter Agreement|author=US Department of Defense|author-link=US Department of Defense|publisher=US Department of Defense|access-date=27 December 2006|date=11 July 2002|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061223112557/http://www.defenselink.mil/Releases/Release.aspx?ReleaseID=3417|archive-date=23 December 2006|url-status=live}}</ref> The final goal of Turkey is to produce new-generation indigenous military equipment and to become increasingly self-sufficient in terms of military technologies.

[[HAVELSAN]] of Turkey and [[Boeing]] of the United States are in the process of developing a next-generation, high-altitude ballistic missile defence shield. Turkey has chosen the Chinese defense firm [[CPMIEC]] to co-produce a $4&nbsp;billion long-range air and missile system.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Date !! General/Admiral !! Officer !! Total<br />(incl. civilian)
|-
|+ General staff figures
|-
| 21 November 2011<ref>{{cite web|title=Asker sayısı ilk kez açıklandı|url=http://www.ntvmsnbc.com/id/25298904|publisher=[[Ntvmsnbc]]|access-date=3 May 2014}}</ref> || 365 || 39,975 || 666,576 
|-
| 2 October 2013<ref>{{cite web|title=TSK personel sayısını açıkladı|url=http://www.ntvmsnbc.com/id/25470010/|publisher=[[Ntvmsnbc]]|access-date=3 May 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140503151540/http://www.ntvmsnbc.com/id/25470010/|archive-date=3 May 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> || 347 || 39,451 || 647,583 
|-
| 2 May 2014<ref>{{cite web|title=TSK personel sayısını açıkladı|url=http://www.ntvmsnbc.com/id/25513631/|publisher=[[Ntvmsnbc]]|access-date=3 May 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140503151543/http://www.ntvmsnbc.com/id/25513631/|archive-date=3 May 2014|url-status=live}}</ref> || 343 || 38,971 || 623,101 
|-
|2 January 2017<ref>{{cite web|title=TSK'da kaç personel var?|url=https://www.trthaber.com/haber/gundem/tskda-kac-personel-var-291628.html|access-date=2021-06-12|website=www.trthaber.com|date=3 January 2017 |language=tr}}</ref>
|203
|26,278
|398,513
|}

=== General staff ===
{{Main|General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces|Special Forces (Turkish Armed Forces)}}
[[File:Ankara asv2021-10 img03 General Staff building.jpg|thumb|Command center of [[General Staff of the Republic of Turkey|Turkish Armed Forces General Staff]].]]
Chief of the General Staff reports to Minister of National Defence. General staff is responsible for:

* Preparing the Armed Forces and its personnel for military operations.
* Gathering military intelligence
* Organization and training of the Armed Forces
* Management of the logistic services

The Chief of the General Staff is also, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces in the name of the [[President of Turkey|President]], in wartime.

Also, the General Staff is in command of the [[Special Forces (Turkish Armed Forces)|Special Forces]], which is not aligned to any force command within the TAF. The [[Special Forces (Turkish Armed Forces)|Special Forces]] get their orders directly from the General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces.<ref>[http://www.sabah.com.tr/fotohaber/gundem/onlar_tsknin_bel_kemigi?albumId=20579&tc=35&page=8 Onlar TSK'nın bel kemiği – Sabah – HaberPlus – Gündem – 09 Aralık 2013] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151006072457/http://www.sabah.com.tr/fotohaber/gundem/onlar_tsknin_bel_kemigi?albumId=20579&tc=35&page=8 |date=6 October 2015 }}. Sabah (26 October 2011). Retrieved 9 December 2013.</ref>

=== Land Forces ===
{{Main|Turkish Land Forces}}
[[File:KCR556 14.5.jpg|thumb|Turkish soldiers in action]][[File:European Best Sniper Team Competition 2024 (8570808).jpg|thumb|A Turkish sniper ([[Hohenfels, Bavaria|Hohenfels, Germany]], 2024)|315x315px]]
The [[Turkish Land Forces]], or Turkish Army, can trace its origins in the remnants of [[Military of the Ottoman Empire|Ottoman forces]] during the fall of the [[Ottoman Empire]] at the end of [[World War I]]. When [[Mustafa Kemal Atatürk]] and his colleagues formed the [[Grand National Assembly of Turkey|Grand National Assembly]] (GNA) in [[Ankara]] on 23 April 1920, the [[XV Corps (Ottoman Empire)|XV Corps]] under the command of [[Kâzım Karabekir]] was the only corps which had any combat value.<ref>Sina Akşin, ''Essays in Ottoman-Turkish Political History'', Isis Press, 2000, p. 44.</ref> On 8 November 1920, the GNA decided to establish a [[standing army]] (''Düzenli ordu'') instead of [[Irregular military|irregular troops]] (the ''[[Kuva-yi Milliye]]'', ''Kuva-yi Seyyare'', etc.).<ref name="Askerlik">Suat İlhan, ''Atatürk ve Askerlik: Düşünce ve Uygulamaları'', Atatürk Araştırma Merkezi, 1990, [https://books.google.com/books?id=I5cKAQAAIAAJ&q=D%C3%BCzenli+Ordu+8+Kas%C4%B1m+1920 p. 88.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160110231305/https://books.google.com/books?id=I5cKAQAAIAAJ&q=D%C3%BCzenli+Ordu+8+Kas%C4%B1m+1920&dq=D%C3%BCzenli+Ordu+8+Kas%C4%B1m+1920&hl=tr&ei=S4zmTNL2E4-6ugPZ-tTCCA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CEIQ6AEwBg |date=10 January 2016 }} {{in lang|tr}}</ref> GNA government's army won the [[Turkish War of Independence]] in 1922.

=== Naval Forces ===
{{Main|Turkish Naval Forces}}
[[File:Senior leaders of the USS Wasp Amphibious Ready Group tour the bridge of TCG Anadolu.jpg|thumb|Senior leaders of the USS Wasp Amphibious Ready Group tour the bridge of [[amphibious assault ship]] [[TCG Anadolu]] (L400) in 2024.]]
The [[Turkish Naval Forces]], or Turkish Navy, constitutes the [[naval warfare]] service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces. The Turkish Navy maintains several Marines and Special Operations units. The ''Amphibious Marines Brigade'' (Amfibi Deniz Piyade Tugayı) based in [[Foça]] near [[İzmir]] consists of 4,500 men, three amphibious battalions, an [[Main Battle Tank|MBT]] battalion, an [[artillery]] battalion, a support battalion and other company-sized units.<ref name=BondsMiller>Ray Bonds, David Miller, ''Illustrated Directory of Special Forces'', Zenith Imprint, 2003, [https://books.google.com/books?id=FMgpdulJsGgC&dq=%22Amphibious+Marine+Brigade%22+Turkish+Navy&pg=PA99 p. 99.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171019205507/https://books.google.com/books?id=FMgpdulJsGgC&pg=PA99&dq=%22Amphibious+Marine+Brigade%22+Turkish+Navy&hl=tr&ei=XrIATfeXEMTIcca2-M0E&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCoQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=%22Amphibious%20Marine%20Brigade%22%20Turkish%20Navy&f=false |date=19 October 2017 }}</ref> The ''[[Su Altı Taarruz]]'' (S.A.T. – Underwater Attack) is dedicated to missions including the acquisition of military intelligence, amphibious assault, counter-terrorism and VIP protection; while the ''[[Su Altı Savunma]]'' (S.A.S. – Underwater Defense) is dedicated to coastal defense operations (such as clearing mines or unexploded torpedoes) and disabling enemy vessels or weapons with underwater operations; as well as counter-terrorism and VIP protection missions.<ref name=BondsMiller/>

=== Air Force ===
{{Main|Turkish Air Force}}
[[File:07-1029 General Dynamics F-16D Turkish Air Force Konya 30.6.22.jpg|thumb|Turkish F-16D Block 50.]]
The [[Turkish Air Force]] is the [[aerial warfare]] service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces. It is primarily responsible for the protection and sovereignty of Turkish [[airspace]] but also provides air-power to the other [[Military branch|service branches]]. Turkey is one of five NATO member states which are part of the [[nuclear sharing]] policy of the alliance, together with Belgium, [[Germany and weapons of mass destruction|Germany]], Italy, and the [[Netherlands and weapons of mass destruction|Netherlands]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/yankee-bombs-go-home-foreign-minister-wants-us-nukes-out-of-germany-a-618550.html|title=Yankee Bombs Go Home: Foreign Minister Wants US Nukes out of Germany|date=10 April 2009|work=Der Spiegel|access-date=18 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190828081635/https://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/yankee-bombs-go-home-foreign-minister-wants-us-nukes-out-of-germany-a-618550.html|archive-date=28 August 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> A total of 90 [[B61 nuclear bomb]]s are hosted at the [[Incirlik Air Base]], 40 of which are allocated for use by the Turkish Air Force in case of a nuclear conflict, but their use requires the approval of [[NATO]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nrdc.org/nuclear/euro/euro_pt1.pdf|title=NRDC: U.S. Nuclear Weapons in Europe • Hans M. Kristensen / Natural Resources Defense Council, 2005.|access-date=28 December 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151211040934/http://www.nrdc.org/nuclear/euro/euro_pt1.pdf|archive-date=11 December 2015|url-status=live}}</ref>

The Air Force took part in the [[Operation Deliberate Force]] of 1995 and [[1999 NATO bombing of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia|Operation Allied Force]] of 1999, and later participated in the United Nations peacekeeping mission in [[Bosnia-Herzegovina]], employing two squadrons (one in the [[Ghedi]] fighter wing, and after 2000 one in the [[Aviano]] fighter wing.)<ref name=1980-Today>{{cite web|url=http://www.hvkk.tsk.tr/EN/IcerikDetay.aspx?ID=131|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120111013955/http://www.hvkk.tsk.tr/EN/IcerikDetay.aspx?ID=131|url-status=dead|title=1980-today in the official website of the Turkish Air Force|archive-date=11 January 2012}}</ref> They returned to Turkey in 2001. In 2006, 4 Turkish F-16 fighter jets were deployed for NATO's [[Baltic Air Policing]] operation.