Following on last night's "Erdogan says Turkey might enter Israel to help Palestinians".
From Al-Monitor, July
The Turkish parliament will soon vote on a two-year mandate allowing the Turkish army to dispatch troops to Somali waters.
ANKARA — Somalia’s breakaway region of Somaliland warned on Wednesday against any deployment of Turkish forces in its maritime zones ahead of a Turkish parliament vote that would authorize sending naval forces to the coast of Somalia.
“The Government of the Republic of Somaliland vehemently rejects any potential deployment of Turkish naval forces within Somaliland’s recognized maritime zones,” an official statement by Somaliland said. Somaliland declared itself independent from Somalia in 1991 but doesn’t enjoy international recognition.
“The reported intention of Turkish naval forces to operate in Somaliland maritime zones constitutes a grave violation of international law and Somaliland’s sovereign rights,” the statement added.
The statement came after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last Friday asked the parliament to vote on a two-year mandate allowing the government to deploy Turkish military forces to Somali regions “to be jointly determined by the two countries, including Somalia's maritime zones,” Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency reported.
The mandate aims to support “the efforts to ensure Somalia's security against terrorism, piracy, illegal fishing, all kinds of smuggling and other threats,” according to Anadolu.
The Turkish parliament, originally scheduled to recess on July 1, postponed its break to an unspecified date last month and is now expected to vote on the mandate before it goes to summer recess.
Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party announced it was having reservations about the mandate on the grounds that the deployment of Turkish troops in Somali waters could pit Turkey against other regional countries. But the mandate is expected to pass with the support of Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party members and their allies....
....MUCH MORE
If he makes a move on Bulgaria and points west we may have to send up the Bat Signal for John III Sobieski.
