Iraq's President has said he has convinced the terrorist organisation to announced a cease fire in its fight against Turkey. In an interview with the magazine Newsweek, which appeared Monday, President Jalal Talabani the PKK will declare a cease fire within days. Talabani said that the cease fire would open a new chapter in his country's relations with Turkey, which has repeatedly called on Baghdad to act against the PKK and its bases in the north of Iraq.
"We are urging the Turkish Kurds to be moderate, to wage their struggle through democratic means," Talabani said in the interview. The PKK in the past have announced limited cease fires, the latest coming after the capture of the group's leader, Abdullah Ocalan, in 1999. However, Turkey has not recognised these cease fires, taking the position that it will not negotiate with an armed terrorist organisation. |