Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş stated that the parliament will be the main platform for discussions regarding the process initiated by the imprisoned leader of the PKK’s call for disarmament.
“The Turkish parliament is where all of Türkiye’s issues are addressed. Therefore, this matter will also be resolved through the unified stance of political parties within parliament,” Kurtulmuş remarked.
He emphasized that he would personally intervene if necessary to ensure the process is conducted transparently, openly, and in good faith and assured that the parliament will fulfill its responsibilities.
His remarks came amid a process that began after Abdullah Öcalan’s call for disarmament, followed by the PKK’s unilateral ceasefire declaration on March 1.
“I believe that political actors will take a reasonable and pragmatic approach. All parties must fulfill their responsibilities to bring this issue to a swift and conclusive resolution,” Kurtulmuş added.
He also firmly denied claims that the İmralı process is linked to constitutional reform efforts, dismissing such assertions as baseless.
“There is no connection between the İmralı process and the constitutional amendment efforts. We started working on constitutional reform from the first day of the 28th parliamentary term, almost a year or a year and a half before any developments regarding İmralı,” he asserted.
Kurtulmuş noted that the ruling AK Party has long advocated for a new constitution, arguing that the current charter, drafted under the 1980 military coup, is undemocratic and outdated. However, the ruling bloc does not have the necessary parliamentary majority to push the proposal forward, posing a significant challenge to the reform process.