ANKARA
Turkey believes in carrying out the “solution process” for bringing an end to terrorism in the country with “patience,” Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz said Tuesday.
The "solution process" is mainly aimed at ending the decades-long conflict with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or the PKK, which the Turkish government also blames for the recent pro-Kurdish violent protests that left 34 people dead and dozens others injured in the country.
Yilmaz made the remarks at the national defense day celebrations of Pakistan held at a local hotel in Ankara, which was attended by several military attaches and diplomats from many countries.
The minister said Turkey's fight against terrorism was an ongoing process, which was being carried out side by side with the “solution process.”
"One day when the solution process will end with success, the fight against terrorism too will be over in our country," he said.
The minister also highlighted the important role of the Turkish armed forces, which he said was forever ready to deal with "any kind of situation."
"Our armed forces are always ready. They have always been ready against any kind of battle they’ve asked to engage in,” he said.
The Turkish government launched the “solution process” two years ago. The dispute with the proscribed Kurdish Workers’ Party has so far claimed more than 40,000 lives over more than 30 years.
The group is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, U.S. and the EU.
The Turkish government has said time and again that it wanted peace with its Kurdish citizens. It has also displayed its willingness to negotiate with the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party, or the HDP, to end street vandalism and terrorism.
Protesters had come out on the streets in different parts of the country against what they termed as Turkey’s alleged indifference to the atrocities being committed in the Syrian border town of Kobani. The protests were particularly violent in Turkey’s Diyarbakir, Mardin, Siirt, Gaziantep, Van along with Batman, Mus, Adana and Istanbul.
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