At the closing session of a three-day summit of the South-East European Cooperation Process (SEECP) yesterday, İstanbul hosted heads of state and government. In addition to the summit’s final declaration, a separate statement on the PKK attacks was issued.
“We, the heads of state and government of the SEECP countries, condemn the latest attacks by the PKK terrorist organization against the Turkish people. We extend our deepest condolences to the families of the victims, the Turkish government and the Turkish nation,” the statement said.
The release of a separate declaration, instead of sparing a paragraph for the issue of PKK terrorism within the final declaration, is being viewed as the participants highlighting the importance they attach to supporting Turkey’s efforts against the PKK, diplomatic sources said.
The statement is also a message to the 27-nation European Union bloc -- although some members of the SEECP are also members of the EU -- as Ankara repeatedly complains of a lack of coordination by the EU side in its fight against terrorism, the same sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Today’s Zaman.
“We call on all members of the international community to be unequivocal in their condemnation of all sorts of terrorist activities and support Turkey in its fight against terrorism,” the statement concluded.
