Turkey reassures PKK leader on Kurdish peace in secret meeting: Report
Turkey's intel chief assured the imprisoned leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in a secret meeting last week that the state will press ahead with the peace process to end 30 years of conflict, media reports said Aug. 20.
The head of Turkey's National Intelligence Organisation (MIT), Hakan Fidan, met on Aug. 15 with PKK leader Abdullah Ãcalan in his island prison, media quoted Deputy Prime Minister BeÅir Atalay as saying.
The meeting came after Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ErdoÄan won the August 10 presidential election - and was aimed at ending any uncertainty over the fate of peace process between Turkey and Kurdish militants under his presidency, the reports said.
The Cumhuriyet newspaper reported that what made Fidan's visit "exceptional" was the fact that it came just after the election, recalling that Fidan had met with Ãcalan on a few occasions over the last 18 months. It said the visit was aimed at answering the question "will ErdoÄan continue the peace process when he takes the presidency?"
"Ãcalan has been clearly assured that ErdoÄan will be a key follower of the [peace] process while in office as president," the report said. The newspaper noted that Foreign Minister Ahmet DavutoÄlu is widely expected to become prime minister while Fidan is favourite to become foreign minister.
The report said the visit to Ãcalan was aimed at passing on the message that the peace process will continue "independent of individuals."
Ãcalan said on Aug. 16 the long-running insurgency that has cost at least 40,000 lives was "coming to an end," hailing the start of a new democratic process in Turkey after the election.
ErdoÄan's government has sought to ease...
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