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The roadmap announced on Monday by Devlet Bahceli, leader of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and key ally of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, aimed at reviving the “Terror-Free Türkiye” process, will reportedly be evaluated at the highest levels within the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party).
According to a report published on Tuesday by Türkiye daily, a new timetable for the process will be prepared based on a report to be submitted by the National Intelligence Organization (MIT).
The report said intensive contacts had been ongoing among the security bureaucracy, Imrali prison and the PKK terrorist group leadership in Kandil to restore momentum to the process.
As part of MIT’s ongoing contacts, a new roadmap and timetable on how the process will proceed are expected to emerge in the near future.
According to the report, jailed PKK ringleader Abdullah Ocalan could be transferred to a study office prepared inside the Imrali prison complex, depending on instructions from the political leadership.
The office had reportedly been prepared earlier but Ocalan has not yet moved there. The report said the security bureaucracy would implement the transfer if political approval is given.
It also stated that Ocalan could be allowed to hold additional meetings linked to the process at that stage.
Officials reportedly assess that direct contact between Ocalan and the organization could accelerate the PKK’s disarmament and dissolution process.
Bahceli on Monday proposed a new institutional mechanism for the process and suggested assigning Ocalan a limited coordination role under a structure he called a “Peace Process and Politicization Coordination Office.”
“A structure should be built where Ocalan can maintain his influence over the organization instead of being positioned as the founding leader of the dissolved PKK,” Bahceli said.
According to Türkiye daily, initial AK Party evaluations viewed some of Bahceli’s proposals—including granting Ocalan a “social status” and coordinator role—as reasonable in principle but dependent on specific conditions.
The report said the AK Party leadership remains reluctant to take new steps before the PKK’s disarmament is fully verified. The ruling party has repeatedly emphasized that laying down arms remains the precondition for any future political or legal steps.
According to the report, the outcome of MIT’s contacts with Ocalan and the Kandil leadership will determine the next phase of the process.
Based on MIT’s findings, the AK Party and security institutions are expected to prepare a detailed timetable.
If the organization takes additional steps in line with the roadmap, discussions could begin on legal arrangements, including Ocalan’s status.
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Legal experts within the AK Party reportedly argue that granting Ocalan a formal legal status would be difficult due to his aggravated life sentence, but say work could potentially proceed under the concept of a “social status,” as proposed by Bahceli.
Bahceli was the first senior political figure to publicly call on Ocalan in October 2024 to dissolve the PKK.
Ocalan later issued a disarmament call in February 2025, after which the PKK announced the end of its armed activities in Türkiye and held a symbolic disarmament ceremony.
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