These amendments have two main purposes: To limit the powers of the General Staff so as to increase the authority of the government over the army, and to overcome the lack of personnel which rose after the coup attempt.
An amendment to the Law no. 2920 on Turkish Civil Aviation has stipulated that those dismissed from the Turkish Armed Forces by a court or disciplinary board before having completed their obligatory service period designated by Law no. 926 on Turkish Armed Forces Personnel cannot enjoy the privileges and benefits provided by their authorization certificate until the rest of their obligatory service period is over (Executive Decree 671 Article 14).
An amendment has been made to the relevant article of the Executive Decree 675 concerning the procedures and principles governing the compensation which will now be paid to the commissioned and noncommissioned officers, specialist gendarmes, civil servants, workers, specialist sergeants and contracted sergeants and privates, and military conscripts dispatched overseas individually or as a contingent upon a resolution of the Turkish parliament. It is possible to say that this provision meets the needs created by Turkey’s Euphrates Shield operation inside Syria. In the operation area, not only security personnel but also civil servants and workers are employed for purposes of assistance, service and reconstruction activities (Executive Decree 676 Article 66).
Changes were made to the Law no. 4678 on Contracted Commissioned and Noncommissioned Officers to be Employed by Turkish Armed Forces, with the Executive Decree 681, Articles 66-71.
The power to extend the contracts of contracted commissioned officers was taken from the General Staff and given to the Ministry of National Defense and Ministry of Interior (Executive Decree 681 Article 66).
An amendment has been made to extend the obligatory service period -during which they can’t resign- of contracted commissioned officers who have become regular commissioned officers, from 10 to 15 years starting on their date of appointment (Executive Decree 681 Article 67).
In the section entitled “Noncommissioned officer sources”, the phrase that “the departments and disciplines are determined by the General Staff” was removed (Executive Decree 681 Article 68).
Those who transition from contracted noncommissioned officer to regular noncommissioned officer position cannot resign in the 15 years -and not 10 years as previously- after becoming a noncommissioned officer (Executive Decree 681 Article 69).
The contracted commissioned and noncommissioned officers who have completed their 12th year in service on the date when the amendment came into force were given the right to apply to the first exam for transition to regular commissioned and noncommissioned officer positions if they meet the other requirements (Executive Decree 681 Article 71).
With an amendment to the Law no. 5335 on the Amendment of Certain Laws and Executive Decrees, the pilots employed as per the additional Article 36 of the Law no. 926 on Turkish Armed Forces Personnel and the retired commissioned and noncommissioned officers who work in the Ministry of National Defense and associated units for services concerning the recruitment of personnel and military students will now be exempt from the provision that states “those who have retired from and receive pensions from a social security institution cannot be employed in any position or duty unless their pensions are terminated” (Executive Decree 681 Article 73). As such, the retired commissioned and noncommissioned officers whose services are needed in the aforementioned categories can continue being employed without the termination of their pensions.
An addition has been made to the Law no. 5607 on Anti-Smuggling stipulating that a premium shall be paid to the Army and Naval Forces personnel who participate in anti-smuggling missions (Executive Decree 690 Article 12).
An addition has been made to the Law no. 1325 on the Structure and Organization of the Ministry of National Defense regulating payments to the military preparation class students of war schools, universities and colleges (Executive Decree 694 Article 40).
Changes to the Law no. 6191 on Contracted Sergeants and Privates stipulate that in order to become a contracted sergeant or private, “the results of the candidate’s security investigation must be positive, or in case the result of that investigation has yet to be received, their archive investigation’s result must be positive” and that the contract will be terminated if the “security investigation yields negative results”. Such personnel will be given “a ten-day leave upon the death of a parent, spouse, child or sibling, a seven-day leave in case they get married, and a ten-day leave if their spouse gives birth”. Furthermore, if the force command in charge of their staffing position changes, they will be relocated by the Ministry of National Defense or Ministry of Interior (previously the General Staff held this authority). Besides, the premium indicators chart found in the same law has also been revised (Executive Decree 694 Article 164-167).
With an amendment to the Law no. 3466 on Specialist Gendarmes, the obligatory service period of specialist gendarmes has been increased from 10 to 15 years. Provisions were passed about the compensation that they will have to pay if they resign before the end of this period, with the exception of health reasons etc. (Executive Decree Article 67-68).
An amendment to the Law no. 4678 on the Contracted Commissioned Officers and Non-Commissioned Officers to be Employed at the Turkish Armed Forces, has stated that those who have become invalid in the scope of the Law on Counterterrorism can extend their contract if they meet specific requirements (Executive 696 Article 75).
Social security and financial rights related changes have been made to the Law no 6191 on Contracted Sergeants and Privates. Furthermore, all sick leaves will be deducted from monthly salaries with the exception of inpatients, those with long-term diseases, and those wounded during counterterrorism efforts or in border contingents (Executive 696 Article 110).