Turkey's Army General İlker Başbuğ, who is of ethnic Albanian origin, has been appointed Chief of Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces, report Turkish media.

 

The Turkish General is of Albanian origin. His parents were forced to migrate to Turkey in the 1950s due to Serb ethnic cleansing policies against Albanians. His village, Afyonkarahisar, located in the western Turkey is mainly populated by Albanians who fled their homes escaping Serb persecution decades ago.

According to official estimates, the number Turkish citizens of Albanian origin is between 3 and 6 million and unofficial sources put that number between 10 and 15 million. Most of their families moved to Turkey as refugees escaping ethnic cleansing and persecution during Serbian state’s expansion in the Balkans. A large number of them are from Sandjak (Ottoman administrative unit) of Nish in present day southern Serbia.

In the four day meeting of the Supreme Military Council of Turkey, which was concluded on Monday, it was decided that Basbug will be replacing the current Chief of Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces, Jashar Bujukanat, who is retiring. The appointment of Basbug must be ratified by the President of Turkey, Abdullah Gul. General Başbuğ, known as the "frosty general,” is expected to pursue more military reforms in the midst of ongoing political ordeals in Turkey.