Erdogan Meets with Delegation from DEM Party
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan met today with representatives of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (DEM) at the Presidential Complex in Ankara. The meeting, which lasted about an hour, was attended by Pervin Buldan, Deputy Speaker of the Turkish Parliament and MP for Van, as well as Mithat Sancar, MP for Şanlıurfa.
Also present at the meeting were Ibrahim Kalın, head of Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT), and Efkan Ala, Deputy Chairman of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party). The main topics of discussion were the evaluation of the so-called “terror-free Turkey” process and how to advance the disarmament of armed groups.
Before the meeting, Pervin Buldan described it to the press as a “historic encounter,” saying it could pave the way for new developments. Mithat Sancar stated that the necessary steps to advance this process were discussed during the talks.
This marks the second time in recent months that Erdogan has met with DEM Party representatives. A similar meeting had previously taken place on April 10.
A day before this meeting, Buldan and Sancar, along with lawyers for Abdullah Öcalan, the imprisoned leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), visited him in İmralı Prison. The two-and-a-half-hour meeting was assessed positively by the DEM Party.
In a statement following the meeting with Öcalan, the DEM Party said he was in good physical and mental condition and emphasized the importance of continuing dialogue to achieve political solutions. These meetings come at a time when Turkey has witnessed significant political and security developments in recent months.
