Turkey Quietly Renounces NATO Links, but Not NATO Benefits

• Turkey Quietly Renounces NATO Links, but Not NATO Benefits
  by Gregory Copley, https://www.theepochtimes.com/
  Commentary
  Turkey on Aug. 3, made its most pointed renunciation of its ties to NATO.
  President Reçep Tayyip Erdoğan, who was sworn into office again on June 2, re-structured his Armed Forces leadership, removing all leaders who had held NATO appointments. Turkey, as a result, has stopped attempting to balance its NATO membership off against its commitments to Russia. It has, de facto, now thrown in its lot with Eurasia.
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  The new appointments come amidst a crisis in the Turkish Armed Forces which have seen, in recent years, a marked decline in the professionalism of key officers. President Erdoğan has favored political loyalty to him over operational experience, often replacing professional military leaders with Gendarmerie (Jendarma) generals.
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  The Turkish Supreme Military Council met on Aug. 3, at the Presidential Palace under the chairmanship of President Erdoğan, with the main focus on the annual reviews of the senior officers of the Turkish Armed Forces. Before the meeting, and in accordance with protocol, the president accompanied members of the YAŞ to the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, where he laid a wreath and signed the Official Book, in which, after praising the role of the Armed Forces, referred to the new strategic goal of the country as the “Century of Turkey,” promising “an increase in the strength of the army.”
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  The “Century of Turkey” plan, which includes the “Blue Homeland” doctrine, specifically targets the interests of Greece. Senior officers were promoted who were known for their anti-Western profile and who were involved in the contrived 2017 “Ergenekon” and 2013 “Varioupoula” purge scandals.
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