From 2008 to 2011, negotiations were conducted with the terrorist organization under the support of the EU, with the main mechanism taking place in Oslo, and this process was kept secret from the public. In 2009, the first attempt to open the process to the public, the Habur fiasco, occurred. This period also coincided with the deepening of the KCK's urban activities. While the terrorist organization appeared to be negotiating, it was in fact openly preparing for civil war. Despite all this, after the failure of Oslo, the process was no longer secret, but completely open to the public and officially implemented.
The judiciary affiliated with the Gülen Movement, another terrorist organization that leaked the Oslo negotiations, summoned and attempted to arrest Hakan Fidan, the head of the National Intelligence Organization (MİT), who was leading the peace process, on the grounds that he had "met with the PKK."
The public was caught between the PKK in the streets, FETO which has spread like a cancer throughout all state institutions, and the intimidation policies of international actors who support these terrorist organizations against Türkiye.
During the 2013 Nevruz celebrations, a letter from the imprisoned leader of the terrorist organization was read aloud in public squares; it called on the organization to withdraw its armed forces from outside Türkiye's borders and lay down its arms. A Council of Wise Men was established, including people from the press, media, and cultural world.
During the same period, a campaign to legitimize the PKK terrorist organization through the Syrian civil war was launched with the support of the US and Israel. In October 2014, street riots were triggered, using the Turkish state's indifference as a pretext.
Social support was sought; both mainstream and opposition left-wing media reluctantly provided media support to the process. Negotiations were conducted on İmralı (home of terrorist Ocalan) and with Kandil. In early 2015, the Dolmabahçe Agreement, containing provisions for peace, was announced.
The terrorist organization had established cantons in Syria by taking advantage of the civil war and had brought these areas under its control by force of arms. The organization aimed to transfer this model to the southeastern cities of Türkiye by taking advantage of the ceasefire created by the peace process. The PKK's youth wing (YDG-H) declared its non-recognition of state institutions in districts such as Diyarbakır (Sur), Şırnak (Cizre, Silopi), Mardin (Nusaybin), and Hakkari (Yüksekova), making statements about "self-governance" (autonomy).
The state's inaction in the name of peace made the trench warfare inevitable, resulting in the martyrdom of hundreds of security personnel and bringing the country to the brink of disaster. The terrorist organization never recovered within the country after these operations, but thousands of security personnel paid the price. It has been widely debated that FETO generals deliberately increased military and civilian casualties in this region.
Despite all the difficulties, after the security forces successfully cleared the regions through operations, the bloody coup attempt was hastily implemented just before the 2016 Supreme Military Council decisions, but it failed. The suppression of the coup attempt led to a complete hardening of security policies domestically and a reorganization of the state with nationalist reflexes.
Immediately after the suppression of the coup, the army began its de facto intervention in Syria, and after 8 years of relentless military and political struggle, threats, isolation, and economic/military embargoes, it prevented the disintegration of Syria while learning to stand on its own feet.
The Turkish state is still paying and bearing the price of this 20-year struggle. 1% of the country is among the top 5 wealthiest segments in the world, but the middle class has disappeared. Pensioners earn below the poverty line. Social balance has been eroded culturally, morally, and economically.
For what? For the sake of the homeland. This nation will eat even dry bread if the homeland is strong and victorious. But if you make the people pay the price and then say, "Sorry, we're going back to square one," that's what will hurt this nation.
