PKK set to surrender weapons to Iraq in October: Kurtulmuş

ANKARA

Turkish Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş on Sept. 8 announced that PKK will start disarming and surrendering weapons to Iraq’s central government this October, in line with the implementation of the “terror-free Türkiye” project.

Kurtulmuş, at a joint press conference with visiting Iraqi Parliament Speaker Haibat al-Halbousi, underlined the importance of the terror-free Türkiye project for the entire region, particularly Iraq and Syria, which have endured great suffering from the presence of terror organizations.

“Preparations for armed groups and militias in Iraq to hand over their weapons to the Iraqi Central Government starting next month are also of vital importance,” said Kurtulmuş, referring to PKK.

The dissolution and disarmament of PKK are critically important for Türkiye’s advancement of the terror-free Türkiye project through the implementation of a road map set by a security committee.

The Turkish speaker recalled that the parliament legislated an important bill to this end in August, with the objective of completely resolving Türkiye’s five-decades-long terror problem.

“We hope that the terror-free Türkiye initiative will impact the entire region, enabling our Iraqi brothers to rid themselves of terrorism at the earliest opportunity,” he said, adding his wishes that this will lead to “terror-free Iraq” eventually.

“As a result, we will build a stronger Middle East by eliminating the terror problem,” he stated. “Not only Türkiye, but also Iraq and Syria will turn into the land of peace.”

PKK has been using the power vacuum in the northern Iraq for decades and using the province as its main headquarters and launch pad for its attacks against Türkiye. As a result of intensive military operations since 2019, the terror group has entirely lost its bases and other facilities in the northern Iraq.

PKK decided to disarm and dissolve in June 2025 following a historic call by its jailed leader Abdullah Öcalan.

HH Development Road project

Kurtulmuş also spoke about the importance of the Development Road project that links Asian economies with Europe.

“This project is vital for the development of Iraq and the entire region and Türkiye. This will enable to integrate Asian economies with European markets via Iraq and Türkiye. I want to underline that we, as
Türkiye, lend our utmost support for the realization of the project,” he stated.

Kurtulmuş and Halbousi discussed ways to accelerate the project in line with a “win-win” understanding, the speaker noted.