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Turkey: Peace process with PKK might 'restart'

July 28, 2015

After signs that Ankara ended peace talks with the Kurdish PKK, Turkey's ruling party has turned around and said a compromise might still be met. Meanwhile, NATO has vowed solidarity with Turkey in fighting terrorism.

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Türkei - Besir Atalay
Image: Getty Images/AFP

The negotiations with the Kurds might resume if "terrorist elements" put down their weapons and leave Turkish territory, Besir Atalay, spokesman for the ruling AKP party said Tuesday.

"We cannot say that the peace process is de facto over. There is currently a stagnation in the mechanism but it would restart where it left off if these intentions emerge," Atalay told a press conference in Ankara.

His statement closely follows an emergency NATO-meeting, called at Ankara's request amid an escalation of violence between Turkish security forces and Kurdish PKK militants. The escalation was sparked by a suicide bombing in the Kurdish border town of Suruc, with many Kurds accusing the Ankara government of not doing enough to protect them against the "Islamic State" ("IS") fighters.

Last week, Turkey launched a two-pronged military offensive against both the IS militants and Kurdish fighters, who are themselves bitter enemies.

NATO backs Turkey

Meanwhile on Tuesday, all NATO members "expressed their strong support for Turkey," said NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg during a meeting.

However, several nations have called on Turkey to continue peace talks with the Kurdish minority, according to a NATO official cited the AP news agency.

"Reconciliation should continue," the Netherlands' ambassador to NATO, Marjanne de Kwaasteniet, said on Twitter.

The alliance members also urged a "proportionate use of military force" against Kurdish militants, according to Reuters news agency.

Karte Türkische Angriffe gegen IS in Syrien und Kurdische Stützpunkte im Nord-Irak ENG

Erdogan slams PKK

The latest comment on the peace process from the AKP comes after series of uncompromising statements from the Turkish president, Tayyip Recep Erdogan, who is also a member of the AKP party.

Earlier on Tuesday, President Erdogan said it was impossible to continue the rapprochement.

"It is not possible for us to continue the peace process with those who threaten our national unity and brotherhood," Erdogan said, referring to Kurdish militants during a news conference ahead of a state visit to China.

Erdogan also urged the parliament to strip politicians with links to "terrorist groups" of immunity, which could be seen as a move against Turkey's pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP).

dj/kms (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)