BRUSSELS, Belgium – NATO’s principal decision-making body vowed on Tuesday to stand by Turkey in its fight against terrorism, as Ankara continued to pound the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) with artillery in its avowed campaign against terrorism.
The rare meeting of the North Atlantic Council (NAC) in Brussels was called at Turkey’s request, which has spurred into action against the PKK after the outlawed group claimed responsibility for the killings of two policemen last week.
Turkish jets carried out fresh attacks against PKK bases in Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region on Tuesday, as a nationwide sweep went into force over the weekend, netting hundreds of terrorism suspects, reportedly including jihadis and PKK members.
July 20 bombings in the town of Suruc, in which 32 people were killed, were claimed by the Islamic State (ISIS) group. Although the current crackdown is against terrorism, its main focus is clearly the PKK.
Without naming the PKK, the NAC issued a statement vowing to support Turkey and its fight against terrorism.
“Terrorism poses a direct threat to the security of NATO countries and to international stability and prosperity. It is a global threat that knows no border, nationality, or religion – a challenge that the international community must fight and tackle together,” said the statement.
Ambassadors of all 28 NATO member countries gathered for the Brussels meeting.
“The security of the Alliance is indivisible, and we stand in strong solidarity with Turkey,” the alliance said after the meeting.
“We will continue to follow the developments on the South-Eastern border of NATO very closely,” the statement said. Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish-populated southeast is the stronghold of the PKK.
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