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Turkish military denies recent resignations caused weakness

06 February 2013 17:07 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) has said recent allegations in the Turkish media that a series of resignations within the military have weakened the chain of command are completely untrue, APA reports quoting Today’sZaman.

Turkish media outlets have reported that recently over 100 Turkish Air Forces (THK) pilots have resigned, provoking speculations over the threat of a weakened command and criticism from the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP).

A statement published on the TSK's website on Wednesday said that resignation and retirement applications of military personnel are received in the months of January and February each year and that the TSK will make a further statement on the situation after applications are processed.

The TSK statement said resignation or retirement is a personal right of all TSK personnel, adding that the empty posts are filled by other personnel with the same capabilities. “Those who would think to harm the TSK by creating a false issue are truly under a delusion. One should consider that degrading statements and publications made against the TSK could dramatically harm the dignity of our country,” the statement added.

Answering questions raised by members of the press in Parliament on Tuesday, Defense Minister Ä°smet YÄ±lmaz acknowledged the recent spike in resignations but said there is nothing unusual about them, adding that THK pilots are given the opportunity of becoming a Turkish Airlines (THY) pilot after completing compulsory duty in the air forces. Moreover, YÄ±lmaz said, the main cause of the recent increase in resignations is the government reducing pilots' compulsory duty from 16 years to 10 years.

Umut Oran, a deputy chairman of the CHP, submitted a parliamentary question on Tuesday in which he asked, “Would the resignations not harm the security of the country?” He also asked whether it is true that some of the THK's fighter jets will fall out of use following the resignation of around 15 percent of pilots. Umut further requested the number of F16 and F4 fighter jet pilots who have resigned before completing their compulsory duty period.