Politics
Terror-free Türkiye plan builds up with imminent disarmament
Anticipation is high that a major threat to Türkiye may finally subside, and a fragmented social unity can be mended. This week, the PKK terrorist group, which exploited Kurdish rights for decades and killed thousands across the country, is expected to lay down arms.
Time will tell how this stage of the “terror-free Türkiye” initiative will hold up, but it will be the first time for the PKK to literally abandon arms after a brief, so-called truce it declared more than a decade ago, only to resume a campaign of violence with more intensity.
Developments confirm that the initiative, launched by a government ally last year, is moving forward to disarmament.
A delegation from the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) went to meet PKK jailed ringleader Abdullah Öcalan on Sunday ahead of expected disarmament. It is the sixth visit to Öcalan in less than one year. For years, he was not allowed to receive visitors. Authorities eased his conditions after the terror-free Türkiye initiative began, and since then, he has mainly held talks with delegations from the DEM Party and his relatives, including his nephew Ömer Öcalan, himself a DEM Party lawmaker.
Lawmakers Pervin Buldan and Mithat Sancar traveled with lawyer Özgür Faik Erol to Imralı prison island near Istanbul, where Öcalan has been serving a sentence since 1999, a DEM Party statement said.
The talks came ahead of a planned ceremony by PKK members in a northern Iraqi region controlled by Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). At the ceremony, expected to be held on or around July 10-12, terrorists are expected to destroy the first tranche of weapons, either by burning them or burying them in a symbolic gesture. The exact location of the ceremony has not been confirmed, but the DEM Party said in an earlier statement that several journalists would be invited to the event. The symbolic disarmament, which comes about two months afterthe PKK announced it would dissolve itself, will likely follow a DEM Party delegation meeting with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
In February, Öcalan urged the PKK to disband. The historic call was a product of the initiative that was shaped after Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli, a government ally, urged authorities to let Öcalan speak at Parliament and make the said call. Instead, Öcalan made the call through statements conveyed by a DEM party delegation at a news conference in Istanbul.
President Erdoğan’s remarks, published on Saturday reflect progress in the initiative. Answering reporters’ questions during a return flight from Azerbaijan, Erdoğan said they had faith in achieving their terror-free Türkiye goal. “We fulfilled many wishes of our nations. This dream that will reinforce our brotherhood, cement our home front and accelerate the march of civilization will also come true. Steps for terror-free Türkiye are being taken gradually, in a controlled manner,” Erdoğan said.
The president underlined that Türkiye’s stance has been clear since the beginning: “Disarmament should be unconditional and the group should dissolve itself fully.”
“Step by step, we arrived at this stage. Once the terrorist group started putting disarmament into practice, the process would gain momentum,” he said.
Counterterrorism efforts since the 1980s have taken a heavy toll on the Turkish economy, while southeastern regions plagued by terrorism saw their economic growth stunted. The PKK’s actions also hindered Türkiye’s border security, especially with the rise of the group’s Syria wing during the civil war there.
“Once bloodshed and tears end, once the weapons disappear, we will turn a new page for the future. Relevant agencies monitor every step in the initiative and take necessary steps. We won’t allow it to continue on its own and will not allow provocations,” Erdoğan said.
The National Intelligence Organization (MIT) is assigned to monitor the disarmament in coordination with authorities in Iraq and Syria, according to media reports. MIT chief Ibrahim Kalın was in northern Iraq last week, where he met local officials, shortly before a visit to Turkish military units deployed on the Turkish-Iraqi border to monitor the group’s activities.
The initiative was largely endorsed by the opposition as Parliament is expected to form a committee to oversee it in the coming days. However, some far-right politicians opposed the move, claiming it was a concession to the terrorist group. Authorities insist that any conditions set by the PKK would not be accepted, and terrorists deciding to surrender and return to Türkiye would be tried under existing laws. Counterterrorism laws offer lenient sentences for PKK members not involved in attacks or other crimes. The PKK’s senior cadres, in the meantime, are expected to leave for third countries after the dissolution.
Erdoğan affirmed his upcoming meeting with a DEM Party delegation consisting of lawmakers Buldan and Sancar, adding that Kalın and Justice and Development Party’s (AK Party) Deputy Chair Efkan Ala would accompany him at the meeting. Ala, a former interior minister, was instrumental in overseeing the “reconciliation process” to end PKK terrorism more than a decade ago. This process, which involved granting more rights to the Kurdish community to end the PKK’s dominance and exploitation over it, ultimately failed when the terrorist group resumed deadly attacks against security forces, apparently strengthening itself during its so-called “truce.” Erdoğan is expected to receive the DEM Party delegation on Monday, a report on Sunday said.
“Disarmament of the PKK terrorist group will be the beginning of a new era for Türkiye in terms of security, democracy and development,” Erdoğan said, adding that Ankara would continue the initiative. The president said the DEM Party and the People’s Alliance the AK Party formed with the MHP agreed to build a road map on how to build a terror-free Türkiye.
Turkish Cypriot Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu voiced concern over Israel’s growing presence in the Greek Cypriot-administered south, saying expanding military ties could undermine security on the divided island.
Ertuğruloğlu made the remarks during a meeting with Turkish journalists in Washington, D.C., as part of his U.S. visit following the U.N. General Assembly meetings.
Responding to a question about the impact of the Greek Cypriot administration’s growing military ties with Israel and other countries on security on the island, Ertuğruloğlu said Turkish Cypriot authorities were concerned about Israel’s increasing involvement.
“We are, of course, not pleased with Israel becoming so influential in southern Cyprus,” he stated, “This is a relationship that puts the island’s security at risk.”
He also criticized the Greek Cypriot administration’s military cooperation with France, U.S. arms sales and military training, as well as British policies involving its bases on the island.
Ertuğruloğlu said such developments risked disrupting stability but argued that Türkiye had taken necessary measures to preserve the military balance.
He emphasized that Turkish Cypriots remained confident about their security despite regional tensions, citing the presence of Turkish forces on the island and Türkiye’s role as a guarantor.
Two-state position unchanged
Ertuğruloğlu further noted the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) would maintain its current foreign policy position on the future of the Cyprus issue, reiterating its call for two sovereign, equal states with equal international status.
“The point we have reached in foreign policy is final: two sovereign, equal states with equal international status,” he said. “There is no option of establishing a new partnership with the Greek Cypriots. That is over.”
He underlined that Turkish Cypriots had previously attempted to establish a partnership with Greek Cypriots, referring to the establishment of the Republic of Cyprus in 1960 and the intercommunal violence that began in 1963.
Ertuğruloğlu argued that the Greek Cypriot side’s approach to the Cyprus dispute had not changed and said the international community’s policies encouraged it.
He also pointed to military cooperation between the Greek Cypriot administration and Israel, as well as the expected participation of U.S., British and French military personnel in anniversary ceremonies in southern Cyprus.
Ertuğruloğlu said future relations on the island could instead be based on good, neighborly ties between the two states.
“There can now be neighborly relations on the island,” he said.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan met with Izmir Mayor Cemil Tugay, who resigned from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) in June, at the Presidential Complex in Ankara on Wednesday.
“We informed the president about important issues on Izmir’s agenda and our projects for the city’s future,” Tugay noted in a written statement, thanking Erdoğan for the meeting and his interest in Izmir.
The meeting comes amid speculation over Tugay’s political future following his departure from the CHP.
Tugay resigned from the party on June 18 amid turmoil following a court ruling concerning the CHP leadership and said he would continue serving as Izmir mayor as an independent.
His departure left Türkiye’s third-largest city with a mayor who was not a CHP member for the first time in more than two decades.
Since his resignation, Turkish media reports have speculated that Tugay could join the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party).
AK Party Izmir lawmaker Mehmet Kasapoğlu, responding to the speculation, said the party would neither attempt to force political developments nor “close the door” on trends emerging naturally in politics.
Erdoğan’s meeting with Tugay follows a Sept. 9 meeting with Ankara Mayor Mansur Yavaş, who later announced his resignation from the CHP and said he would continue his political career as an independent.
Morning raids on Thursday netted Mersin Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Vahap Seçer, along with the mayors of the Yenişehir and Mezitli districts in the province.
Authorities announced that a total of 59 suspects were detained in an investigation into corruption in the municipalities.
Seçer, Yenişehir Mayor Abdullah Özyiğit and Mezitli Mayor Ahmet Serkan Tuncer are all members of the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), whose new chair, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, has pledged to cleanse the party of corruption after taking office last May.
The investigation into Mersin municipality, a city of about 2 million people, found that violations of regulations in 13 public tenders and 63 acquisitions organized by the municipality resulted in a public loss of more than TL 330 million ($6.73 million). Suspects linked to Mezitli Municipality caused a public loss of more than TL 1.1 billion, investigators discovered, again through rigged public tenders and acquisitions, while the figure was TL 105 million at Yenişehir Municipality.
A similar scheme was discovered in most municipalities that faced investigations in the past two years, and almost all of them were run by CHP mayors. In other investigations, prosecutors have accused defendants, including mayors and senior municipal bureaucrats, of running criminal organizations that thrived on bribes in exchange for zoning and building permits, awarding lucrative tenders to businesspeople in exchange for advance payments in violation of tender laws and holding companies hostage over payments for their services, releasing the payments only after the companies paid additional money to the municipalities.
Authorities said Tuncer also faced a separate investigation over allegations that he ordered armed attacks on people with whom he was involved in a feud, as well as on a local office of the New Party (YP), which was founded last July by former CHP chair Özgür Özel, and the offices of a media company.
The CHP seeks to restore its image, tarnished by the arrest of mayors on corruption charges. As promised by Kılıçdaroğlu, the “cleansing process” will now involve preemptive steps to prevent future cases, according to a recent report by Sabah newspaper. Starting next year, the party will introduce a “performance monitoring system” for its mayors, which will serve as a benchmark to assess whether they comply with the CHP’s predetermined criteria.
With this move, the mayors’ past and future performance will come under scrutiny. They will be assessed based on how many criteria they have met, and at the end of the process, they will be given a “report card.”
The mayors will undergo reviews in a number of areas, including project management, financial management, human resources management and public relations. The flow of funds in municipalities, investments and the allocation of tenders are also expected to be examined comprehensively.
Mayors whose activities are deemed suspicious, who fail to meet the established criteria or are found to have performed poorly will not be nominated in the next election. Throughout the process, the main focus will be on clean politics and financial transparency.
All of the mayors who remain under the CHP umbrella are individuals who were nominated in the last local elections during Özgür Özel’s tenure as party chairperson. The party leadership also plans to hold a meeting of mayors shortly to strengthen central authority and discuss steps to be taken for the coming year.
Defense Minister Yaşar Güler attended the Distinguished Observer Day of the Unity of Strength-2026 military exercise in Azerbaijan on Thursday, alongside senior commanders from the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK).
The exercise, hosted by Azerbaijan with the participation of Türkiye and Uzbekistan, is aimed at improving coordination and joint operational capabilities among the three countries’ armed forces.
Güler visited the exercise area in Shusha with Chief of General Staff Gen. Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu, Navy Commander Adm. Ercüment Tatlıoğlu, Land Forces Commander Gen. Metin Tokel and Air Force Commander Gen. Rafet Dalkıran.
Güler and Azerbaijani Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov also inspected weapons, ammunition and military technologies displayed and used during the exercise.
Türkiye’s Defense Ministry said Turkish and Azerbaijani air forces struck simulated ground targets on their first attempts during the drills. The ministry also said troops conducted urban warfare training as part of the exercise.
According to the ministry, participating units trained under challenging scenarios designed to improve coordination, speed and their ability to conduct joint operations.
More than 3,500 military personnel from Türkiye, Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan have taken part in the joint exercises, which began Sept. 21, according to Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry, noting the drills marked the first military exercise of this scale to include territories retaken by Azerbaijan.
More than 130 unmanned aerial vehicles, 70 armored vehicles, 90 artillery systems and 20 aircraft are participating in the exercise, along with more than 30 electronic warfare, reconnaissance and surveillance systems. The drills also involve more than 15 air defense systems, eight sets of engineering equipment and more than 20 naval vessels, the ministry said.
The Kremlin said Wednesday that work was underway on the possible transfer of Türkiye’s Russian-made S-400 air defense systems to a third country, a move that could help address a longstanding dispute between Ankara and Washington over Türkiye’s participation in the F-35 fighter jet program.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the issue was “on the agenda” and that discussions were taking place.
“Relevant work is being done, and appropriate contacts are taking place,” Peskov noted when asked about the possibility of transferring the systems.
His comments came after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow could consider allowing the S-400 systems to be transferred to another country.
Lavrov said any recipient would need to act responsibly and maintain friendly relations with Russia, adding that Moscow would consider such a transfer if a request were made.
Türkiye agreed to purchase the S-400 air defense system from Russia in 2017 and acquired the system in 2019.
The acquisition drew criticism from the United States and other NATO allies, which argued that operating the Russian system posed risks to NATO defense systems and the F-35 program.
Washington subsequently removed Türkiye from the F-35 program and imposed sanctions under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).
Ankara has long sought to resolve the dispute and return to the F-35 program. Yet, U.S. President Donald Trump said he was considering allowing Türkiye to rejoin the F-35 program at the NATO summit in Ankara in July.
Speaking alongside President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the Presidential Complex after arriving in Ankara for the summit, Trump said the time had come to remove sanctions that have strained relations between the two NATO allies.
“We’re going to lift the sanctions,” Trump said. “We don’t want to sanction our friends. I don’t want to choke my friend with sanctions.”
Calling Türkiye a militarily powerful country under Erdoğan’s leadership, Trump remarked that relations between Washington and Ankara were at their strongest point in years.
Yemen is seeking to expand cooperation with Türkiye to rebuild state institutions and improve essential public services as the war-torn country grapples with persistent security and humanitarian challenges, Foreign Minister Afrah al-Zouba said.
Al-Zouba made the remarks during a meeting with Türkiye’s Ambassador to Riyadh, Emrullah Işler, Yemen’s official SABA news agency reported.
The two officials discussed recent developments in Yemen and the wider region, as well as ways to strengthen bilateral relations and broaden cooperation.
Al-Zouba praised Türkiye’s support for Yemen and its internationally recognized government, including Ankara’s backing for the Presidential Leadership Council.
She stressed the importance of strengthening political and diplomatic coordination between Türkiye and Yemen amid regional and international developments, saying closer ties could support efforts to rebuild state institutions and bolster regional security and stability.
The Yemeni government is particularly interested in expanding cooperation with Türkiye in strengthening state institutions and improving basic services to help ease hardships facing the population, al-Zouba said.
The foreign minister also raised the impact of Houthi attacks on security in Yemen and the wider region, including threats to international trade and maritime traffic in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
She warned that indiscriminate missile launches by the Houthis posed growing risks to civil aviation and international air travel, saying weapons that fail to distinguish between civilian and military targets endanger passenger aircraft and civilian lives.
Işler, for his part, reiterated Türkiye’s support for the Yemeni government and for Yemen’s security, unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity.
He also reaffirmed Ankara’s commitment to expanding bilateral cooperation and supporting the Yemeni government’s efforts to rebuild state institutions and restore security and stability.
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