A dispute followed this announcement as Republican People’s Party (CHP) parliamentary group deputy chairman Muharrem İnce and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) parliamentary group deputy chairman Oktay Vural said they object to the closed-door session.
İnce also objected to the motion, which he said, is a clear declaration of war against Syria.
Meanwhile, İbrahim Kalın, a senior adviser to Prime Minister Tayyip Erdoğan, said on his Twitter account that Turkey had no interest in a war with Syria but would protect its borders. He said political and diplomatic initiatives would continue.
The opposition’s objections were rejected and the closed-door meeting began.
The motion which bears the signature of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan says: “Ongoing crisis in Syria affects the stability and security in the region and now the escalating negativeness affects our national security. Syrian armed forces have been holding assailant acts under the name of military operations into Turkish land despite our several warnings and diplomatic tries since September 20, 2012. This situation risks and threatens our national security. In this respect, the need of taking precautions and acting quickly against any threats to Turkey has arisen. In the framework of the situation, under Article 92 of the Turkish Constitution, we kindly ask Turkish parliament to discuss a motion that authorizes the government for a year to send Turkish troops to foreign countries.”
MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli said his party will vote for the motion while CHP is expected to vote against the motion.
The decision to propose the motion regarding Syria came at a late Wednesday meeting of Erdoğan and several ministers after the deadly Syrian mortar strike.
(Today’s Zaman)
