WASHINGTON DC - The United States will support a peaceful settlement between the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) and Turkey, the US Ambassador to Turkey said on a visit to the Kurdish city of Diyarbakir.
"It (laying down arms) will contribute to peace in the area and the United States is ready to support the peace process," US Ambassador John Bass told reporters on Sunday. "Diyarbakır is a rich cultural region with a lot of differences. Dropping weapons will attract a lot of people and stimulate tourism in the area. I think the peace process will be good for the region and we will support it," he added.
Last month, the jailed Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan, who established PKK three decades ago, called on his group to hold a conference and decommission arms in favor of the peace process and the democratization of Turkey.
"I invite the PKK to attend an extraordinary congress in the spring months in order to make the strategic and historic decision to abandon the armed struggle," said Oclan in a statement that was read by Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) parliamentarian Sirri Sureyya Onder, who is also a member of negotiation team.
The US State Department also welcomed Ocalan’s call for the PKK to put down arms last week.
“We have, and obviously would welcome all steps in support of a peaceful resolution in this conflict, and commend the efforts of both the government and all parties concerned to work towards a lasting peace,” State Department deputy spokesperson Marie Harf said on Monday.
The US ambassador was accompanied by his wife Holly Holzer Bass during his trip to Diyarbakir.
“The Ambassador and Ms. Holzer Bass are very excited to visit Diyarbakir and are very much looking forward to experiencing the famous Diyarbakir hospitality,” the consulate said in a statement on its Facebook page.
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