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Monday, April 26, 2010    

Turkey's Islamist government allows intelligence to buy battle tanks, raising eyebrows

ANKARA — Turkey plans to enable the intelligence community to continue to purchase heavy weapons, including main battle tanks and submarines.   

The government of Prime Minister Recep Erdogan has approved the renewal of a law that would allow the law enforcement and intelligence communities to procure heavy weapons without permission from the military or Defense Ministry. Both communities have come under the direct control of the Islamist government.

"What will the police departments do with these heavy weapons?" opposition parliamentarian Hulusi Guvel asked. "Are they going to replace the military? I really wonder what they're after."


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Erdogan's approval for the renewal of the weapons procurement law comes amid strained relations between the government and secular military. The military has been racked by the arrest of more than 100 current and former officers on charges of planning a coup.

Under the law, the police and National Intelligence Organization could also order main battle tanks and air defense systems. Officials said the legislation has been examined by parliament's Interior Committee.

On April 20, a panel in the Interior Committee inserted a clause that would enable the law enforcement and intelligence communities to purchase military platforms. Parliamentarians said the clause was restored upon the insistence of the military's General Staff and the Defense Ministry.

The opposition has warned that legislation to allow bodies other than the military to purchase heavy weapons marked a dangerous trend. Parliamentarians said this could fuel a rivalry between the militaries and security forces under Erdogan's government.

"We turned back where we had left off," Guvel said.



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