Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan considered today the invitation of Kurdish chief Abdullah Ocalan, imprisoned in Türkiye, the “Kurdistan workers’ party” to throw himself and dissolve “a historical opportunity”.
“We have a historic opportunity to progress towards the goal of destroying the terrorist wall,” said Erdogan.
He stressed that Türkiye “will watch closely” to make sure that talks to end the rebellion will reach a “successful end”, warning of any “provocation”. “When terrorism and the pressure of weapons are suppressed, the space of politics in democracy will develop naturally,” he added.
He continued: “No member of this nation, whether Türkiye or Kurdish, will be forgiven anyone who hinders this process through speeches or mysterious actions, as has happened in the past.”
The Kurdistan workers’ party was in an armed conflict with the Turkish state, and it is classified by Ankara and its Western allies, a “terrorist organization”.
The conflict between Türkiye and the PKK has killed more than 40,000 people since 1984.
Abdullah Ocalan urged his party to abandon arms and ban its activities, as part of efforts to reach peace with Türkiye and end a 4 -year conflict.
“Hold your meeting and make a decision, all groups should abandon their weapons and that the PKK will replace.”