“Gorran will not hide that it will support Kurds outside the Kurdistan Region,” the party said in a statement on Saturday.
“Gorran in many events said it will support all Kurds outside Iraq to secure their national and cultural rights under international human rights standards and international laws.”
“Our movement is a civil one without guns, focusing on dialogue and civil struggle to resolve problems,” Gorran added.
In early June, Cavusoglu accused Gorran and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) of backing the PKK, which operates several bases inside the Kurdistan Region.
On Friday, Cavusoglu repeated the allegation in an interview with state news agency Anadolu, claiming his government’s military operations in the Kurdistan Region are supported by Baghdad and the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in Erbil.
Turkish forces have pushed tens of kilometers into the Kurdistan Region in an operation that aims to reach PKK headquarters in the Qandil Mountains. Its military frequently carries out airstrikes and fires cross-border artillery at alleged PKK positions.
Neither the Iraqi government nor the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) have said they support the Turkish incursion.
In its statement, Goran also accused Turkey of discriminating against Sulaimani, undermining peaceful dialogue.
“The Turkish government will treat Erbil and Sulaimani differently as Cavusoglu said. They do not allow flights between Sulaimani and Turkish airports, harming the citizens of Sulaimani province. At the end, this kind of statement is to avoid solving problems peacefully and will deepen the regional problems,” the statement added.
Turkey blocked flights from Kurdistan Region airports after the September 2017 independence referendum. In March this year, Turkey reopened its airspace to Erbil airport, but maintained its ban on Sulaimani, accusing the main parties of Sulaimani province – Gorran and the PUK – of helping the PKK.
Ankara has refused to reopen its airspace to flights to and from Sulaimani on the pretext of security concerns because of PKK activities in the province. Last year, Ankara expelled the PUK’s representative to Turkey after the PKK captured two Turkish intelligence agents in Sulaimani province.
