Back القوات البرية التركية Arabic Türkiyə Quru Qoşunları Azerbaijani Türkisches Heer German Τουρκικός Στρατός Ξηράς Greek Ejército de Turquía Spanish نیروی زمینی ترکیه Persian Armée de terre turque French צבא טורקיה HE Türk Kara Kuvvetleri Italian トルコ陸軍 Japanese

Turkish Land Forces

Turkish Land Forces
Türk Kara Kuvvetleri
Emblem of the Turkish Land Forces
Founded
  • June 28, 1363 (as the Ottoman Army)
  • July 7, 1826 (as the Asakir-i Mansure-i Muhammediye)
  • November 8, 1920 (as the Army of the Grand National Assembly)[1][2]
  • July 1, 1949 (as the Turkish Land Forces Command)[3][4]
CountryTurkey
TypeArmy
RoleLand warfare
Size401,500 (official TAF figure)
350,000 (CIA, active duty only)[1]
Part ofTurkish Armed Forces
Motto(s)"Peace at home, peace in the world"
ColorsGold & maroon   
Marchİleri Marşı
AnniversariesJune 28[5]
EquipmentList of equipment of the Turkish Land Forces
EngagementsList of wars involving Turkey
Websitewww.kkk.tsk.tr/en/
Commanders
Commander-in-chiefPresident Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Minister of National DefenceMinister Yaşar Güler
Chief of the General StaffGeneral Metin Gürak
CommanderGeneral Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu
Chief of StaffLt. Gen. Veli Tarakcı
Insignia
Flag of Turkish
Land Forces
Command
Army aviation roundel

The Turkish Land Forces (Turkish: Türk Kara Kuvvetleri) is the main branch of the Turkish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The army was formed on November 8, 1920, after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. Significant campaigns since the foundation of the army include suppression of rebellions in Southeast Anatolia and East Anatolia from the 1920s to the present day, combat in the Korean War, the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus and the current Turkish involvement in the Syrian civil war, as well as its NATO alliance against the USSR during the Cold War. The army holds the preeminent place within the armed forces. It is customary for the Chief of the General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces to have been the Commander of the Turkish Land Forces prior to his appointment as Turkey's senior ranking officer.

Alongside the other two armed services, the Turkish Army has frequently intervened in Turkish politics, a custom that is now regulated to an extent by the reform of the National Security Council. It assumed power for several periods in the latter half of the 20th century. It carried out coups d'état in 1960, 1971, and 1980. Most recently, it maneuvered the removal of an Islamic-oriented prime minister, Necmettin Erbakan, in 1997.[6]

From late 2015, the Turkish Army (along with the rest of the Armed Forces) saw its personnel strengths increased to a similar level as the previous decade. Factors that contributed to this growth include the Turkish occupation of northern Syria, as well as a renewal of the Kurdish–Turkish conflict.[7][8][9]

  1. ^ Suat İlhan, Atatürk ve Askerlik: Düşünce ve Uygulamaları, Atatürk Araştırma Merkezi, 1990, p. 88. (in Turkish)
  2. ^ Ozoglu, Hakan (2011). From Caliphate to Secular State: Power Struggle in the Early Turkish Republic. ABC-CLIO. p. 62. ISBN 978-0-313-37957-4.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Harp53 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ 1949 Temmuzunda Türk Silâhlı Kuvvetleri yeniden örgütlendirilerek, Genelkurmay Başkanlığına bağlı Kara, Deniz, Hava Kuvvetleri kuruldu., Genelkurmay Başkanlığı, Türk Tarihi, Silahlı Kuvvetleri ve Atatürkçülük, Genelkurmay Başkanlığı, 1973, p. 65. (in Turkish)
  5. ^ "Kara Kuvvetleri'nin kuruluş yıl dönümü kutlanıyor". Archived from the original on 2016-03-10. Retrieved 2016-03-09.
  6. ^ "Middle East :: Turkey — The World Factbook". Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 2021-01-02.
  7. ^ "Genelkurmay personel sayısını açıkladı" (in Turkish).
  8. ^ "PKK declares end to truce in Turkey". BBC News. 2015-11-05.
  9. ^ Axe, David (2015-11-03). "U.S. Brings Dogfighters to Counter Russians Over Syria". The Daily Beast. Retrieved August 24, 2016.

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