Needed Turkish Parliamentary Vote Comes

Turkish Parliament

NATO member, Turkey will now take a more active role against ISIS. This parliamentary vote was required to kick off a Turkish offensive. Al Jazeera America reports on Turkey’s vote here:

Turkey’s parliament has approved a motion giving the government new powers to launch military incursions into Syria and Iraq, and to let foreign forces use Turkish territory for possible operations against the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) — toward whom Turkey has long been accused of turning a blind eye.

Turkey, a NATO member with a large and modern military, has yet to define what role it intends to play in the U.S.-led coalition against ISIL. The alliance has already begun airstrikes to roll back the insurgents in both Iraq and Syria.

The Turkish parliament on Thursday voted 298-98 in favor of the motion, which sets the legal framework for any Turkish military involvement in Iraq or Syria, and for the potential use of Turkish bases by foreign troops.

Parliament had previously approved operations in Iraq and Syria to attack Kurdish separatists, or to thwart threats from the Syrian regime. Thursday’s motion expands those powers to address threats from ISIL fighters who control a large cross-border swath of Iraq and Syria — in some parts right up to the Turkish border.