Turkey has requested consultations with NATO’s North Atlantic Council now that it is participating in military action against ISIS elements on its border with Syria and is opening up several of its air bases for use by the US and coalition aircraft, the Alliance announced Sunday. The NAC, which includes NATO ambassadors of all 28 member states, will meet July 28 in Brussels, according to a NATO release. Turkey requested the meeting in light of the “seriousness of the [security] situation,” after several terrorist attacks inside its territory in the last week were linked to ISIS. The meeting also will inform Alliance members of the response measures it is carrying out, states the release. The Article IV provision refers to the part of the Alliance’s 1949 founding treaty, which encourages member states to bring subjects to the table for discussion with the NAC—the principal body for political consultations in NATO. Consultations at the NAC level under Article IV can occur when any of the member states feel their “territorial integrity, political independence, or security … is threatened.” Article IV was invoked by Poland in 2014 following the Crimea crisis as well as Turkey in 2012 and 2003.
The U.S. military is maintaining a beefed-up presence in the Middle East, including fighters and air defense assets, following the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities June 22 and subsequent retaliation by the Iranians against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
