In a year without elections, Turkish politics had its fair share of turbulence and fast-paced developments. Undoubtedly, highlights of the year for politicians from all parties were new phases in the terror-free Türkiye initiative, and the arrest and detention of mayors of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) on charges of corruption.
For the terror-free Türkiye initiative, the year began on a positive note as a delegation from the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) met Devlet Bahçeli, leader of the government ally Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) on Jan. 2. The meeting was significant as the delegation had recently returned from a meeting with the jailed ringleader of the PKK terrorist group and it was another rare get-together for two parties whose ideologies probably had the sharpest contrast. It was, however, just part of the initiative, which, quite strikingly, was engineered by the MHP, a party that long defended strict military measures to eliminate the PKK. The DEM Party, on the other hand, adhered to an unwavering pro-PKK stance for a long time, criticizing operations against the group.
The Bahçeli-DEM Party meeting, a continuation of outreach between the two sides that began when Bahçeli unexpectedly shook hands with DEM P
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