Turkey will not allow KCK to create a parallel state, Erdoğan says
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan talks to members of the press after prayers in Istanbul. AA photo
Turkey will not allow the establishment of a parallel state such as the one allegedly planned by the Kurdish Communities Union (KCK), Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said in Istanbul this morning.
Erodoğan talked to members of the press after prayers at Istanbul's Blue Mosque, answering questions about the KCK detentions and military operations in northern Iraq.
"Let me make one thing clear," the prime minister said. "It is not possible for the Republic of Turkey to allow the existence of a parallel state, such as the KCK. No one should expect our security forces to lay down their arms."
The KCK is the alleged urban wing of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey and much of the international community.
Terrorist groups are the ones which are supposed to lay down their arms, Erdoğan said, adding that things would develop in a positive way if that occurred.
"If this matter is about politics, then the appropriate place to discuss it is the Parliament," Erdoğan said. "If there are rights to be obtained, they will decided upon in the Parliament."
When asked about yesterday's meeting with Kurdish Regional Government's (KRG) leader Masoud Barzani, Erdoğan said Turkey had a problem in northern Iraq and asked the KRG to support Turkey with its peshmerga fighters.
"We expect their assistance if they are able to deliver it. If not, we have to do what is necessary. That is what we said,” he said.
