This is Brian Wiklendt with Garfinkel Schwartz and I’d like to continue to provide you
with updates on what’s happening in world conflicts around the world.
Today I’m going to talk to you about Turkey which is an important
area to watch because of its location in the Middle East and political instability there.
Of course many people have seen the shooting of a Russian Ambassador to Turkey who was
shot in Ankara, Turkey, on Monday, December 19, 2016.
We keep up with where U.S. troops might be sent in 2017 because that’s a strong indicator
of where our civilian contractors may be working.
We always recommend you learn as much as you
can before you go.
Kurdish groups have been fighting for an independent Kurdish state to be combined with Kurdish
areas in Iraq.
Turkish President Erdogan barely survived a coup attempt in July 2016 and later cracked
down on suspected coup conspirators by arresting 32,000 people.
Why does the United States care?
The U.S. has close ties to a tribal Kurdish group called the Peshmerga fighting ISIS in
Iraq supplying the Peshmerga with arms, air power, intelligence and hundreds of millions
of dollars in financial support.
About 2,000 people have been killed in the fighting.
Because of these ties, Erdogan has accused the U.S. of being involved in the coup attempt.
He has called for the extradition from the U.S. of Fethullah Gulen, a religious and political
leader in exile in Pennsylvania who’s been suspected of inciting the insurrection.
Another reason to worry: there is a joint U.S.-NATO air base in Turkey called Incirlik,
which was briefly under siege during the attack on Erdogan.
About 2,500 U.S. troops are stationed at Incirlik, which is command central for the U.S. fight
against ISIS.
Whether it’s Syria, Libya, the East China Sea, the South China Sea, South Korea, Iraq,
Yemen, the Ukraine, Afghanistan, Eastern Europe or anywhere else in the world, if you’re
a contractor, you really need to talk with a Defense Base lawyer before you go to work.
Call Garfinkel and Schwartz anytime day or night so you may have your questions answered.
You can talk with me and get more information on the Defense Base Act law and how it can
protect you wherever it is that you might be going to work.
You’ll have a point of contact when you go overseas and can ask me questions that
come up via phone, e-mail or through your family while you’re there.