Turkey's parliament extends mandate to deploy troops to SyriaSeptember 4, 2015 - 11:01 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey's parliament voted late on Thursday, September 3 to extend by a year a mandate authorizing the deployment of troops to Syria and Iraq, weeks after it stepped up its role in the U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State, according to Reuters. The NATO member opened its air bases to coalition fighter jets in July and has since taken part in joint strikes for the first time on the radical Sunni militant group in northern Syria, ending years of reluctance to take a front-line role. While it has the second-largest military land force in NATO, Turkey has repeatedly made clear it does not intend to send ground troops into Syria unless provoked by a clear threat to its national security. It has been working with Washington on plans to flush Islamic State out of a strip of territory on the Syrian side of the border by jointly providing air cover for U.S.-trained Syrian rebel fighters on the ground. Also in July, Turkey launched air strikes on Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) camps in northern Iraq in response to what it said was an escalation in attacks on its security forces by the Kurdish militant group. The parliamentary motion had been widely expected to pass despite resistance from the pro-Kurdish opposition. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Russian Ambassador to Armenia summoned to Moscow for consultations Russian Ambassador to Armenia Sergei Kopyrkin has been summoned to Moscow for consultations. Armenian border troops stationed in Tavush Starting from May 24, the Armenian border troops officially take over the protection of sections of the border in the Tavush region. Welcome to CaseKey 2024. Byblos Bank Armenia firmly stands by future innovators Strategic business cases, invaluable experience, innovative approaches and more than 25 events are in store for the participants of CaseKey 2024. Macron honors Charles Aznavour on 100th anniversary French President Emmanuel Macron has paid tribute to the memory of French-Armenian crooner Charles Aznavour. |