Demirtaş: CHP Shouldn't Ignore Kurds in 'Syria Conference'

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Peoples' Democratic Party's (CHP) imprisoned former co-chairperson Selahattin Demirtaş has said that "an environment of dialogue and cooperation should be developed with the Syrian Kurds" and called the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) to not ignore the Kurds in the "Syria conference" it will hold.

Giving an interview to the daily Birgün, Demirtaş made remarks on Turkey's Syria policies.

"Turkey's policy towards Syria was wrong on the first day, it is wrong today. If you establish your foreign policy on somebody's loss, namely Assad's and the Kurds' losses, it means that you lost at the beginning. Turkey's policy on Syria should have not been about making somebody lose but making Turkey win. And the most reasonable way to do this was keeping the capability to establish a dialogue with all the parties alive.

"But the racist, sectarian and expansionist understanding of foreign policy took Turkey to the point where it supported jihadists. While the Syrian Kurds were looking for cooperation with Turkey, the AKP [Justice and Development Party] government chose to cooperate with jihadists. And this pushed the Kurds to the US and Russia step by step.

"Today, what seems impossible but is the most realistic thing is Turkey directly talking to and cooperating with the Syrian Kurds. Attempts for war an invasion will make Turkey be under much greater threats. The insistence for war should be given up and an environment of dialogue and cooperation with the Syrian Kurds should be developed. I hope the Kurds won't be ignored in the Syria conference that will be held by the CHP. I understand that the PYD [Democratic Union Party] is not invited but the Kurds should somehow be able to express themselves in that conference." (AÖ/VK)