PUK responds to Turkish FM’s remarks over party’s link to PKK

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) has responded to remarks made by a Turkish official about the party’s relations with the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) calling on Turkey to review its position.

PUK spokesperson Saadi Ahmed Pira, in a statement released on Tuesday, expressed his party’s surprise at the remarks of Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu which accused the PUK of aiding the PKK, a group advocating Kurdish rights in Turkey that has been fighting a decades-long insurgency against Ankara.

“We were surprised to hear about Cavusoglu’s remarks,” Pira said, stating that his party has always supported resolving issues through peaceful means.

Earlier, the Turkish Foreign Minister had claimed that a minister in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) who belonged to the PUK told him that “a small faction” of his party was backing the group, which Turkey and its Western allies consider a “terrorist” organization.

“The PKK has been supported by a group within Talabani’s party [PUK] and Gorran Movement. Thanks to their support, it came in the city of Sulaimani,” Cavusoglu told reporters, according to the state media.

Cavusoglu’s comments came after a trip to Washington where he met with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in the hope of pressuring Americans to stop supporting Syrian Kurds and make sure they withdraw from the town of Manbij.

Said the PUK spokesperson, “Our response to Cavusoglu’s remarks is that, since the Biqa talks in 1993 and declaration of a cease-fire between the PKK and Turkey with [PUK former leader] Mam Jalal Talabani’s mediation, our policy regarding this issue has not changed."

"The PUK does not want the blood of any side to be shed, be it Kurdish or Turkish blood, Pira added. “Therefore, it is important for Turkey to closely review its position, as it would guarantee a sustained peace,” the statement concluded.

On Wednesday, the Turkish military announced its warplanes had pounded several PKK positions in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, killing six fighters.

Editing by John J. Catherine