Iraq and Syria motion passes in Parliament

The Presidential motion regarding the extension of the mandate for sending troops to Iraq and Syria for another 2 years has been accepted in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) General Assembly.

While 357 deputies voted in favor of the motion, 164 deputies voted against it.

The AKP, MHP, IYI Party, Felicity Party (Saadet Partisi), Future Party (Gelecek Partisi), and DEVA Party had announced they would vote in favor of the motion. The Republican People's Party (CHP), however, voted against it, citing the clause regarding the "presence of foreign soldiers in Turkey."

The Green Left Party had expressed the view that the motion would harm regional stability. During the debates on the motion, tensions occasionally rose between AKP and IYI Party deputies and Green Left Party members of parliament.

In the motion submitted with the signature of AKP Chairman and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, it was emphasized that the developments in the regions adjacent to Turkey's southern land borders and the ongoing conflict environment continue to pose increasing risks and threats to national security.

The motion, which drew attention to the fact that Turkey attaches great importance to the protection of the territorial integrity, national unity, and stability of its neighbor Iraq, stated: "On the other hand, the continued presence of PKK and DAESH elements in Iraq, and attempts at ethnically-based separatism, pose a direct threat to regional peace, stability, and the security of our country.

In Syria, terrorist organizations that continue their presence in areas adjacent to our border, primarily the PKK/PYD-YPG and DAESH, continue their actions against our country, our national security, and civilians."

EMPHASIS ON NATIONAL SECURITY

The motion stated that within the framework of these developments, it is of vital importance for national security to take necessary measures in accordance with rights arising from international law against all kinds of risks, threats, and actions that could endanger Turkey's national security, aimed at disrupting the territorial integrity of Iraq and Syria and creating illegitimate faits accomplis on the ground.

The motion noted the following:

"Furthermore, in light of the fact that the territorial integrity and independence of Iraq and Syria have been reaffirmed by United Nations Security Council resolutions 2170 (2014), 2178 (2014), 2249 (2015), and 2254 (2015), and that resolution 2170 (2014) condemned terrorist activities in these countries and called on all United Nations member states to take necessary measures in accordance with their responsibilities under resolution 1373 (2001) and international law against the activities of DAESH and similar terrorist organizations, it is also important to continue the activities in which Turkey participates within the framework of the international coalition formed to combat DAESH and other terrorist organizations.

To take all necessary measures within the framework of international law against separatist movements, terrorist threats, and all kinds of security risks directed at Turkey's national security; to eliminate attacks that may be directed at our country from all terrorist organizations in Iraq and Syria in the future; to ensure the maintenance of our national security against other potential risks such as mass migration; to effectively protect and defend Turkey's interests in line with unilateral separatist attempts that have no legitimacy occurring in regions adjacent to Turkey's southern land borders and developments related to them; and to help pursue a rapid and dynamic policy to avoid facing a situation that would be difficult to compensate for in the future depending on the course of events; I submit for your information, in accordance with Article 92 of the Constitution, the necessity of extending the duration of the permission granted by the TBMM decision dated 02.10.2014 and numbered 1071, which was last extended until 30.10.2023 by the TBMM decision dated 26.10.2021 and numbered 1310, for a period of two years starting from 30.10.2023, with the scope, limit, amount, and timing to be determined and decided by the President, for the Turkish Armed Forces to be sent to foreign countries to conduct cross-border operations and interventions when necessary, and for foreign armed forces to be present in Turkey for the same purposes, for these forces to be used according to the principles to be determined by the President, and for all kinds of measures to be taken to eliminate risks and threats, and for the arrangements that will enable these to be made according to the principles to be determined by the President."