European Parliament President calls on PKK to dissolve itself

PanARMENIAN.Net - European Parliament President Jerzy Buzek has called on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) to dissolve itself, saying the group “should end its decades-old violent campaign just like Spain's separatist ETA did in October.”

“I hope that the end of all of the complicated situations will be like in Spain. The PKK should end all attacks as ETA did,” Buzek said in an interview with Today's Zaman ahead of a visit to Turkey on Thursday, November 24.

The Polish politician also emphasized that it is the responsibility of the Turkish government to make sure human rights and minority rights are protected.

Dwelling on EU-Turkey relations, he said, “Our relations are not the best nowadays,” he said. “But this is why it is also important for me to be in Turkey.”

“We can say that we need each other. The EU certainly needs Turkey not only for economy and trade but also for stability and security in the eastern and southern parts of Europe and in the Middle East. So our relations are very important. And I believe Turkey needs Europe for the same reasons. It is important for both sides to have closer cooperation,” said Buzek.

Buzek, who will address a session of the Parliament in Ankara on Thursday, hopes to find ways to revive Turkey's stalled EU membership process, focusing particularly on the Cyprus stalemate, during his talks with Turkish officials.