| Mehmet İlker Başbuğ | |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 30 August, 2008 |
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| President | Abdullah Gül |
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| Preceded by | Yaşar Büyükanıt |
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| Born | April 29, 1943 Afyonkarahisar, Turkey |
| Spouse(s) | Sevil Başbuğ |
| Religion | Islam [1][2] |
| Military service | |
| Service/branch | Turkish Armed Forces |
Mehmet İlker Başbuğ (born 29 April 1943[3]) is the 26th and current Chief of the Turkish General Staff, since 30 August 2008. In this post he succeeds Mehmet Yaşar Büyükanıt.[4]
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Biography
General İlker Başbuğ was born in the Afyonkarahisar province in Western Turkey to an immigrant family from Bitola, known as Manastır during the Ottoman Empire.[3] He graduated from the Turkish Military Academy in 1961 as an infantry officer. After graduating from the Infantry School in 1963, he served in different units of the Turkish Army as Platoon and Commando Company Commander until 1970.
Following his graduation from the Army Staff College in 1973, he has served as the deputy chief of General Staff Operations Planning Command, as an instructor at Army Staff College, as Intelligence Division Intelligence Plans Chief at the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) in Mons, Belgium, as the Chief of Staff of the Defense Intelligence of the Army Plans and Principles Command, and as the Commander of the 247th Infantry Regiment of the 51st Infantry Brigade.
İlker Başbuğ, who has also graduated from the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst, England and the NATO Defense College, was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General in 1989. He has later served in the SHAPE in Mons, Belgium again, this time as the Chief of Logistics and Intelligence Departments as well as serving as the 1st Armored Brigade Commander until his promotion to the rank of Major General in 1993.
As Major General, he served as the Deputy Commander of the Turkish Gendarmerie Public Order Command and later as the Chief of National Military Representation (NMR) at Mons, Belgium between 1993-1995. Following his promotion to the rank of Lieutenant General, he served as the 2nd Army Corps Commander and as the Deputy President of the Secretariat of the National Security Council of the Republic of Turkey, respectively.
In 2002, he was promoted to the rank of General and served as the Deputy Commander of the Turkish Army until 2003, and then as the Deputy Chief of the General Staff until 2005. Between 2005 and 2006, he served as the Commander of the First Army until he assumed the post of the Commander of the Turkish Army on August 30, 2006.
The start of his tenure as the chief of staff has been marked by an initiative to improve the military's image and a reduction of militarist rhetoric.[5][6]
Decorations
- Turkish Armed Forces Medal of Distinguished Courage and Self-Sacrifice
- Turkish Armed Forces Medal of Honor
- Order of Distinction of Pakistan (Pakistani Nishan-ı Imtiaz)
- Golden Medal of the Eagle of the Republic of Albania, awarded by President Bamir Topi on June 19, 2009.[7]
Personal life
Başbuğ is married to Sevil Başbuğ and has two children. His personal interests include sociology, international diplomacy, cinema, and theatre.[3]
Footnotes
- ^ General Basbug in mosque Not Work Right Zaman (Turkish)
- ^ Turkish army generals, including Chief of Staff Gen. Ilker Basbug, center, pray during the funeral of veteran Col. Abdulkerim Kirca at the Kocatepe Mosque Photo from AP Photo - Daylife
- ^ a b c "Intellectual, hawk and cool". Turkish Daily News (Hürriyet). 2008-08-05. http://arama.hurriyet.com.tr/arsivnews.aspx?id=-634852. Retrieved 2008-09-17.
- ^ "Beklendiği gibi: Başbuğ" (in Turkish). Taraf. 2008-08-03. http://taraf.com.tr/haber.asp?id=13762. Retrieved 2008-08-03.
- ^ "[http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/9925049.asp?gid=229&sz=36429 However, his subsequent reaction to well founded critique on the handling of events leading up to the Aktütün incident has shown his limits. He has also been named recenty by Turkey's Taraf newspaper as the name behind the coup plan to overthrow the ruling AKP party. Paşa demeyin Başbuğ deyin]" (in Turkish). Hürriyet. 2008-09-17. http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/9925049.asp?gid=229&sz=36429 However, his subsequent reaction to well founded critique on the handling of events leading up to the Aktütün incident has shown his limits. He has also been named recenty by Turkey's Taraf newspaper as the name behind the coup plan to overthrow the ruling AKP party.. Retrieved 2008-09-17.
- ^ "Gazetecilik utancı" (in Turkish). Taraf. http://www.taraf.com.tr/haber.asp?id=17115. Retrieved 2008-09-17.
- ^ "Office of the President of Albania" (in Albanian). aaaa. http://www.president.al/shqip/info.asp?id=5212. Retrieved 2009-06-19.
References
- Commander of Turkish Armed Forces. Official biography.
External links
- Photographs and biography in Turkish.
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Yaşar Büyükanıt |
Commander of the Turkish Army August 30, 2006–August 30, 2008 |
Succeeded by Işık Koşaner |
| Preceded by Yaşar Büyükanıt |
Chief of the General Staff of Turkey August 30, 2008–present |
Succeeded by incumbent |
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