Sailing the Seven Seas

Historians have deemed only a handful of states and rulers worthy of the notion symbolizing world domination: the idea of being the “master of the seven climates and the seven seas.”
In the past, the Portuguese, Spanish, and Ottoman empires were at times associated with this title. This manner of expression, traced back to Herodotus, forms the basis of a Mediterranean-centered perception of the world.
During the reigns of the Ottoman sultans Mehmed the Conqueror and Suleiman the Magnificent, a form of dominance consistent with the spirit of this notion was maintained. Later, however, a ship of Italian origin sailing under the Greek flag—the Averof—confined the Ottoman navy to the Sea of Marmara. This was followed by the years of the Second World War, during which pressure mounted through Mussolini’s incessant threats of “advancing into the Black Sea.”

We are at the beginning of an era in which new objectives and new responsibilities are envisaged for the Turkish Armed Forces. At the same time, we stand on the threshold of a confrontation between potential victims and potential perpetrators.
The anxiety surrounding a confrontation of unpredictable scope places Turkey and the Turkish Armed Forces at the unchanging center of strategic calculations carried out both in the West and in the East.

Only a year ago, Turkey was gradually subjected to exclusion in NATO forums. During a NATO exercise in Norway, a target board bearing the image of Atatürk was used. In an effort to marginalize Turkey, a parallel NATO structure called the “Bucharest Nine” was even invented in Eastern Europe.
Times have changed.

In recent days, land, naval, and air elements of the Turkish Armed Forces set out from the Foça Naval Base in Izmir toward new horizons. For the first time in history, Foça is commanding the NATO Amphibious Task Force.
Within this framework, Turkish vessels assigned to the “Anatolian Task Group,” under the command of the flagship TCG Anadolu, are being sent off from Foça toward the Atlantic Ocean by the Commander of the Navy, Admiral Kadir Yıldız.
The “Anatolian Turkish Naval Task Group,” which will remain at sea for three months until April 23, is commanded by Rear Admiral Mevlüt Savaş Bilican.

A Floating Army

Until June 30, 2026, Turkish officers will simultaneously hold command of three major assignments: the NATO Allied Reaction Force, the NATO Amphibious Task Force Command, and the Landing Force Command.
Our ships, which also carry units belonging to the 66th Mechanized Brigade stationed in Tekirdağ, will not only transit and participate in exercises from the Adriatic to the Atlantic and from the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean. At the same time, they will showcase Turkish-made military equipment in Spain, Portugal, the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, and Germany.

Approximately 11 countries—including Germany, Italy, France, the United Kingdom, and Spain—are participating in the series of exercises conducted under the name “STEADFAST DART 2026,” with around 10,000 soldiers, roughly 1,500 ground vehicles, nearly 200 armored vehicles, about 30 fighter aircraft, 15 helicopters, and 15 warships.
The backbone of these exercises is formed by the mechanized infantry units and armored vehicles of Turkey’s elite and internationally experienced 66th Brigade. Turkey is participating in NATO exercises with a brigade-level force of more than 1,500 personnel drawn from its land, air, and naval forces. The 66th Mechanized Brigade deployed to Poland via Bulgaria and Romania in 2017 and gained significant international operational experience there.

Awaited with Excitement

For this purpose, a total of 1,500 personnel are embarked aboard the amphibious aircraft carrier TCG Anadolu and the warships TCG Derya, TCG İstanbul, and TCG Kınalıada, together with 22 armored vehicles, 123 various military vehicles, an Amphibious Marine Infantry Battalion, nine utility and attack helicopters, and three Bayraktar TB-3 UCAVs.
The Turkish and German armed forces constitute the core elements of the exercise. Germany is hosting the drills with 4,000 soldiers, 800 ground vehicles, 60 armored vehicles, 25 helicopters, 10 transport aircraft, and three support ships.

Turkish vessels carrying approximately 900 sailors will dock at the ports of Emden and Hamburg in the coming days. Turkish military units will be seen not only in the ports but also in many German cities such as Hohne, Münster, Wunstorf, and Leipzig.
Taken together, the presence of such a large Turkish military force in Europe for nearly three months has generated great excitement among Turks living in Europe. As Turkish soldiers appear in European media and are seen alongside Turks in Germany, numerous debates are also expected to arise. Let us say it in advance: from discussions about the defense capacity of the German Armed Forces to the question, “What are Turkish soldiers doing in Germany?”, many controversies await us.

Baltic Patrol

The Turkish Armed Forces’ mission in the Baltic is not limited to exercises. Turkish Air Force patrol aircraft are also operating from Ämari Air Base in Estonia within the framework of NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission. Turkey previously undertook similar missions in Lithuania in 2006 and in Poland in 2021.
NATO and Germany attach particular importance to the defense of the Baltic region, as Russian vessels in this area engage in continuous provocative activities that extend to harassing German cities. Germany has conducted “irregular warfare” exercises in and around Hamburg in preparation for potential social unrest.

Police Shot a Soldier

These exercises should not be taken lightly. Recently, a peculiar incident occurred in Germany, where the distinction between military and civilian duties is sometimes blurred. Near Munich, a military unit carried out a nighttime alert and deployed into the field. Citizens reported seeing individuals carrying long-barreled weapons in the forest at night and called the police emergency number “110.” Police units arriving at the scene ordered the armed individuals to lay down their weapons. When there was no response, they opened fire. One German soldier was seriously wounded.
Similar jurisdictional confusion is also evident in the daily “drone” incidents observed in German airspace. To prevent civilian authority from being overshadowed, it is being considered to assign police units the task of shooting down drones.

Turkish soldiers are arriving in a country where ambiguous military debates are taking place at a time when notable tensions are also present in German–US military relations. At the beginning of the new year, statements by General Christian Freuding of the German Army drew particular attention.

Hello Washington

General Freuding stated that the direct military contact between Berlin and the Pentagon, which had existed for 70 years, has effectively broken down. As Berlin is now forced to obtain much of its information indirectly through the German Embassy in Washington rather than directly from the Pentagon, questions are being raised within NATO regarding coordination and trust.
A similar crisis of confidence is well known in relations between Europe and the United States during the Greenland crisis. It may even be possible to extend this perception and trust crisis to Syria.

The first signs of a shift in relations between Turkey, NATO, and Germany had already become visible at the Munich Security Conference in February 2025. At that time, Germany expressed live on air—with tears in its eyes—that it had been abandoned by the United States. We are now once again on the eve of a Munich Security Conference. World leaders who shape the global economic order in Davos will this time come to Munich to discuss the future defense architecture. The United States has already announced that it will participate with a modest delegation.

NATO and Europe do not need only Turkish troops. Turkey’s experience and strategic foresight are of great importance for Europe’s future. While Turkey conducts patrol missions in the Bab al-Mandab Strait together with Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and takes initiatives for Syria’s unity, it also contributes to the defense of the Baltic region. Albeit belatedly, Turkey’s on-the-ground realities are being acknowledged. Turkey, which is active in Syria, is now also showing the flag at Germany’s Emden Naval Base.