Turkey said it expected European nations to show more understanding for the threat posed to its security by Kurdish militants after it condemned terrorist attacks in France and Austria, the Turkish state-run Anadolu news agency said.
Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said Turkey was awaiting “the same empathy” from Europe over the killings of thousands of people by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), an armed group which has been fighting for political autonomy in Turkey since 1984, according to Anadolu.
“Terrorism has no religion, race or identity,” Çavuşoğlu said during the 130th Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on Wednesday. He labelled the events in Austria and France as “barbaric terrorist attacks”.
The PKK is designated as a terrorist organisation by Turkey, the United States and the European Union. But Turkey has frequently accused European governments of turning a blind eye to pro-PKK organisations among the Kurdish diaspora on the continent and for harbouring sympathies for the group’s aims.
Ahval