YENİ Party Rejects Mecca Agreement and Opposes Sending Turkish Forces to Yemen

Turkey's opposition YENİ party rejected the Mecca defense agreement, announcing its opposition to sending Turkish military forces to Yemen under its framework, during a meeting convened by party leader Özgür Özel with party cadres responsible for foreign affairs.

The cadres raised a series of objections, most notably that the agreement was concluded without informing or obtaining parliament's approval, and that executive meetings were held within its framework with promises to deploy soldiers before any formal authorization—which, in their words, constitutes "a breach of constitutional articles relating to international treaties and troop deployment." They added that the region is experiencing an active conflict, and that engaging in this situation exposes Turkey to danger and threatens the lives of soldiers.

The cadres also criticized the clause prohibiting member states from withdrawing during the first ten years of the agreement's implementation, stating: "You are mortgaging the next decade, and this affects soldiers' lives and Turkey's security." They pointed out that any elected government's term does not exceed five years, insisting that they will raise these criticisms in the general assembly.

The cadres leveled sharp criticism at the Republican People's Party (CHP) following its announcement of support for the agreement, describing it as having "become an actual partner in the People's Alliance," and pointing to the contradiction between this position and what the party had previously stated.

Meanwhile, when asked about the YENİ party's parliamentary bloc position on the vote, the party spokesman Zeynep Emre responded: "We have an opinion, but the decision will be announced by colleagues tasked with speaking on behalf of the parliamentary group"—without revealing the final direction.