Politics
Erdoğan terms terror-free Türkiye a success as key report awaited
Hours before he met a delegation from the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party), President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan lauded the accomplishments of the terror-free Türkiye initiative for the disarmament of the terrorist group PKK.
“We have successfully conducted the process for over the past 16 months despite sabotage attempts. At times, we took risks but reached the current stage without any trouble,” Erdoğan told the parliamentary group meeting of his Justice and Development Party (AK Party) in Ankara on Wednesday.
“The committee at Parliament is about to complete its report, and our Parliament will continue working in this new stage of the process,” Erdoğan added.
After the AK Party meeting ended, Erdoğan hosted Pervin Buldan and Mithat Sancar, two lawmakers from the party linked to the PKK. Buldan and Sancar are part of the so-called “Imrali delegation” who relayed the messages of the PKK’s ringleader, Abdullah Öcalan, jailed in the Imrali island prison, during the initiative. Last February, Öcalan called on the PKK to dissolve itself in a landmark move. The PKK has largely complied and announced dissolution last spring, months before its members held a symbolic ceremony in northern Iraq where they burned their weapons.
The initiative, originally launched by government ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli in 2024, is conducted discreetly as the issue is sensitive for Türkiye, which has lost tens of thousands in PKK attacks since the 1980s. The initiative has been unilateral so far as authorities denied any concessions to the PKK in return for dissolution.
The Turkish Parliament, last August, established the National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Committee to plan the future of the initiative. The committee, comprised of the AK Party, the MHP and the opposition, is working on a final report of suggestions to advance the initiative. The report will serve as a guideline for Parliament in case of new legislation for the initiative. The parties proposed leniency in sentences for PKK members not involved in acts of terrorism and the right to hope for Öcalan, who was jailed for life after his capture in Kenya in 1999. Mithat Sancar told reporters before their meeting with Erdoğan that the parliamentary committee had “grounds for compromise for the joint report.”
“We hope we will achieve something appropriate with the spirit of this process,” he said. Buldan noted that they were also received by Erdoğan in the past on the initiative, and their latest meeting came at a “certain point of the process.”
“There is a great expectation regarding the report,” she said.
Erdoğan stated that the People’s Alliance of the AK Party and MHP worked in solidarity, within the same strategy and tactics, “acting with courage at critical turning points.”
“In parallel with ending uncertainty in Syria’s north and full integration, the process will be relieved of a burden,” he said, referring to the PKK’s Syrian wing, YPG, which long ignored Öcalan’s call for dissolution.
The Syrian army recently retook a town occupied by the YPG and forced the group to comply with a March 2025 deal it failed to comply with, for integration with the post-Assad Syrian army.
He said that the parliamentary report will be approved with “constructive contribution of political parties.”
“After the report is released, political institutions will have a greater responsibility. The AK Party will act responsibly in this process, and we will be more constructive, more embracing. We won’t avoid taking risks,” he said, adding that at the same time, they would not overshadow the memory of martyrs died (in counterterrorism operations).
Ankara on Tuesday reiterated its concerns over safety in the Black Sea after a drone attack on two civilian vessels left several crew members injured.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry said the ships were attacked after leaving the Russian port of Novorossiysk late Monday and that several crew members were wounded, adding that “their condition is being closely monitored.”
“We are deeply concerned about the escalating conflict between Russia and Ukraine in the Black Sea, which is affecting civilian shipping despite our numerous warnings,” the ministry said.
It called on all parties to “urgently implement concrete measures to ensure the safety of navigation in the Black Sea” and warned that food supplies could otherwise be affected.
According to the ship-tracking site MarineTraffic, the two vessels, identified by the ministry as Yasar and Nadezhda, sail under the Panamanian and Cameroonian flags, respectively, but are owned by Turkish companies.
Russia and Ukraine have stepped up attacks on cargo vessels in recent weeks.
A Turkish fishing vessel was attacked in the Black Sea near the coast of Crimea in late June, leaving one person dead and four others injured.
At the end of May, Türkiye warned of an “uncontrolled escalation” in the Black Sea region after a drone attack on a Turkish cargo ship. The Ukrainian Navy claimed that a Russian drone had attacked the vessel.
More than three years of the Russia-Ukraine war have jeopardized maritime security in the Black Sea. Türkiye has seen several drones of Russian or Ukrainian origin crash on its territory, while uncrewed armed naval vessels have frequently washed ashore. In response to the growing threats, Türkiye, Romania and Bulgaria established a maritime security initiative primarily tasked with clearing stray naval mines in the Black Sea.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan was in Kyiv last month and addressed the issue during a news conference with his Ukrainian counterpart.
“The safety of navigation and commercial security in the Black Sea are of vital importance,” he said.
Fidan recalled that the United Nations had proposed maintaining commitments to energy security and the safety of navigation in the Black Sea even while the war continues. He said the aim was to safeguard global grain supplies, adding: “As you know, two years ago the grain agreement achieved partial success, allowing Ukrainian grain to reach global markets freely during that period. This not only helped stabilize prices but also made a significant contribution to food security in many parts of the world, including Africa.”
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Tuesday chaired the Supreme Military Council (YAŞ), which approved the promotion and retirement of senior military officers at its annual meeting. Erdoğan and members of the council (Cabinet ministers and commanders of the Turkish army’s branches) visited Anıtkabir, the mausoleum of the Republic of Türkiye’s founder Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, before the meeting, paying their respects to the man who led the War of Independence.
Twenty-five generals and admirals, along with 69 colonels, were promoted. Ziya Cemal Kadıoğlu, commander of the Turkish Air Force, retired. He was succeeded by Gen. Rafet Dalkıran, commander of the Combat Air Force Command. The commanders of the other top posts in the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) remained in their positions, with their terms extended. Alper Gezeravcı, an Air Force colonel who became Türkiye’s first astronaut in 2024, was promoted to the rank of brigadier general.
The tradition of high-level military councils in Türkiye dates back to the Ottoman era, with the first Supreme Military Council established in 1837 under Sultan Mahmud II. Initially tasked with drafting military regulations, resolving service-related issues and adapting Western military practices, the council underwent several reorganizations and periods of abolition during the late Ottoman era.
Following the founding of the Republic of Türkiye in 1923, the modern Supreme Military Council was formally established in 1925. In its early years, it operated during peacetime, advising on military affairs and promotions, with the president serving as its ex officio chair.
Over the decades, its structure and leadership evolved, reflecting shifts in Türkiye’s political system and civil-military relations.
During the multiparty era that followed 1946, the prime minister assumed the chairmanship, and the council’s membership was expanded to include senior commanders and selected ministers. The council’s mandate became more formalized in 1972 under Law No. 1612, focusing on promotions, retirements and strategic planning.
The council’s authority and composition changed significantly following major political developments, including the 1980 military coup and, more recently, the Gülenist Terror Group’s (FETÖ) failed coup attempt on July 15, 2016.
The reforms introduced after 2016 expanded civilian oversight and aligned the council’s procedures with Türkiye’s transition to a presidential system in 2018, making the president its chair and broadening ministerial participation.
Today, the Supreme Military Council meets annually to decide on promotions, retirements and extensions of service for senior officers. While its core mission remains the management of senior military personnel, the council also serves as a symbolic and strategic forum reflecting the balance between civilian authority and military leadership in modern Türkiye.
The unprecedented surge of migrants from Morocco to the Spanish territory of Ceuta last week prompted Europe to consider suspending the Schengen Agreement with Spain. The issue, which some suspect involved Israeli influence, has been viewed by Europe as a test of border security and territorial control rather than a humanitarian tragedy. Europe’s approach stands in sharp contrast to Türkiye’s response to humanitarian crises, both in its own region and around the world.
Türkiye acts under the principle that “A fairer world is possible,” articulated by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and reaches out to disadvantaged communities in need around the world without discrimination. Whether in Syria, Palestine, among the Rohingya Muslims, or in Somalia, Türkiye’s aid destinations have varied, but its commitment to humanitarian assistance has remained constant. Unlike many European countries, Türkiye has not turned away those seeking refuge at its borders and has also responded to humanitarian crises in distant regions.
For instance, since the beginning of the Syrian civil war, Türkiye has hosted more than 2 million Syrian refugees fleeing atrocities committed by the now-defunct Assad regime. At the same time, it called for a fair sharing of responsibility and burden as Syrian migrants reached European borders in pursuit of a better life. Even as Europe was slow to help Türkiye address the needs of refugees, Türkiye continued to welcome them and still provides refuge to Syrian nationals, two years after the Baathist regime collapsed in its southern neighbor.
Elsewhere, Türkiye has hosted Palestinians injured in Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip, providing them with medical treatment.
Supporting a lasting and just peace to end the Russia-Ukraine war, Türkiye has assumed the role of mediator and facilitator while also taking in hundreds of Ukrainian children who lost their families in the war under the “Childhood Without War Project,” supported by first lady Emine Erdoğan.
Ilkay Çiçek, the mayor of Menderes district in the western city of Izmir from the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), was among 13 suspects detained on Tuesday on charges of bribery, corruption, abuse of office and forgery of official documents.
The Chief Prosecutor’s Office in Türkiye’s third-largest city announced that the detentions were part of an investigation into allegations that municipal officials accepted bribes in exchange for building and zoning permits.
Security forces launched operations in Izmir’s Menderes, Karabağlar and Konak districts to apprehend 16 wanted suspects. Three other suspects, including Menderes’ deputy mayor, a municipal assembly member and a former municipal bureaucrat, remain at large.
Çiçek was elected mayor of the small Aegean coastal district in the 2024 municipal elections, replacing another CHP mayor in a district that has been a stronghold of the opposition party for years.
Dozens of CHP mayors have been the subject of criminal investigations, and many have been detained or arrested on corruption charges, along with a sizeable number of municipal bureaucrats. The alleged web of corruption, as the CHP’s rivals describe it, often involves accusations that mayors and municipal staff accepted bribes in exchange for granting permits that otherwise would not have been approved and awarding lucrative municipal tenders to businesses with ties to municipal officials or those that paid bribes to mayors and bureaucrats.
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met with Libya’s Acting Defense Minister Abdulsalam Zubi and Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah’s National Security Adviser Ibrahim Dbeibah in Ankara on Tuesday, the Foreign Ministry said.
The meeting was held behind closed doors and no further details on the agenda or the discussions were provided.
Ankara emerged as a prominent diplomatic actor as it helped ease military tensions in Tripoli and stepped up its outreach to the eastern faction throughout 2025 as it shifted its Libya policy.
Libya remains split between two administrations: a government appointed by the House of Representatives in early 2022 and based in Benghazi, led by Osama Hammad, which controls the east and much of the south; and the internationally recognized Government of National Unity, led by Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Mohammed Dbeibah, in Tripoli, which runs the west.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman that Israel must fully comply with the roadmap for the second phase of the Gaza Peace Plan for it to succeed, as the two leaders discussed bilateral ties and regional developments in a phone call on Monday.
Erdoğan held a phone conversation with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Monday, discussing Türkiye-Saudi Arabia relations as well as regional and global issues, according to Türkiye’s Communications Directorate.
According to the statement, the leaders reviewed cooperation between Türkiye and Saudi Arabia and exchanged views on regional and global developments during the conversation.
During the call, Erdoğan reaffirmed Türkiye’s commitment to promoting lasting peace and stability in the region, expressing sorrow over recent attacks targeting Saudi Arabia.
The Turkish president also stressed that Israel’s full adherence to the roadmap for the second phase of the Gaza Peace Plan is essential for the initiative’s success.
Erdoğan said Türkiye is closely monitoring developments related to the implementation of the plan, underscoring Ankara’s continued support for efforts aimed at securing a lasting cease-fire and regional stability.
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