ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkey’s main pro-Kurdish party will kick off a new round of meetings with Turkish political parties next week, starting with the strongest opposition party. This comes amid ongoing progress in peace talks between Ankara and Kurdish rebels. The Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) announced on Wednesday that it will meet with Turkey’s main opposition party, the Republican People’s Party (CHP), on Monday, without providing further details. It added that similar meetings might be held with other Turkish political parties. In January, the DEM Party conducted a series of talks with Turkish politicians, conveying messages from Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The discussions included meetings with Turkey’s parliament speaker and representatives of major political parties. DEM Party delegates also visited the Kurdistan Region, where they met with senior officials and leaders of ruling parties. These talks were followed by what the DEM Party described as a “historic” letter by Ocalan last week, in which urged the PKK to disarm and disband after decades of armed struggle against the Turkish army. Rudaw has learned that the DEM Party will also meet with several other political parties in Ankara next week. The party is also planning to hold over 100 meetings with its supporters across Turkey later this month to explain the content of Ocalan’s letter. The PKK has been responding positively to Ocalan’s call, expressing its readiness to convene a congress and vote on disarmament and dissolution, as requested by their leader. However, the PKK insists that such a significant decision will not be made unless Ocalan personally attends their congress. Mustafa Karasu, a senior PKK commander, stated on Tuesday that the armed group is undergoing a “transformation” and intends to shift to political struggle within Turkey following its potential dissolution. Ocalan has been jailed in a secluded prison on Imrali island, north of the Turkish mainland, since 1999. Founded in 1978, the PKK initially sought the establishment of an independent Kurdistan but now advocates for autonomy. The group is considered a terrorist organization by Turkey. The DEM Party’s predecessor, the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), played a pivotal role in negotiating peace talks a decade ago. However, the short-lived ceasefire collapsed in 2015 and was followed by intense urban fighting in the country’s southeastern Kurdish areas.
Turkey21-05-2026Suspension of main opposition leadership targets Turkey-PKK peace process: Mediating party
