Erdoğan says anti-terror bid to boost farming, livestock sector

ISTANBUL

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on July 3 the successful completion of his government’s anti-terrorism initiative would deliver its greatest benefits to agriculture and livestock.

“When the terrorism issue is completely resolved, our nation will reap the greatest harvest in the agriculture and livestock sector,” Erdoğan said at an agricultural summit in Istanbul.

He linked the government’s “terror-free Türkiye” project to long-term development in farming regions, particularly in the country’s east and southeast.

“Our plains will be more fertile, our plateaus will be more beautiful. Our rivers will flow more vigorously and the yield of our fields will, God willing, increase even more,” he said.

“As peace takes root in eastern and southeastern Anatolia, the spring air it brings will be felt by all 86 million people and all 81 provinces.”

The initiative he referenced builds on indirect contacts involving imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan as part of a broader reconciliation effort. The terror group has previously declared a ceasefire and announced plans to dissolve itself and lay down arms.

“When this process concludes, our economy will become even stronger, our production will increase even more, and our brotherhood will be further solidified,” Erdoğan said. “As the [ruling] People’s Alliance, we will successfully bring this process, for which we have put in great effort, to its goal.”

He also announced new credit support measures for farmers, saying the government was raising lending limits to expand agricultural investment. Credit for women and young farmers will increase from 3 million Liras to 5 million liras, he said, while limits for small livestock farming will rise to 2 million liras and for large livestock farming to 3 million liras.

Erdoğan added that loans of up to 60 million liras would be made available for dairy farming investments and up to 40 million liras for livestock farming investments.

During a parliamentary speech on June 24, the president told lawmakers earlier this week that the government would soon submit legislation tied to the initiative, saying consultations would be finalized before a draft bill is presented to parliament “without further delay.”

“I believe we have more than enough capacity to resolve this issue without compromising the qualities of our state and the values of our nation,” he said. “We will continue to do so.”

On June 16, MPs decided that the General Assembly, originally scheduled to begin its summer break on July 1, would instead continue plenary sessions.

Government officials say security agencies must confirm that PKK has fully disbanded before the legislative phase advances. Kurtulmuş has also cited a symbolic weapons-burning ceremony in Iraq’s Sulaymaniyah as a positive but insufficient step, warning that full verification is still required before moving ahead.