The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) has led a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state, and its presence in Iraq has been a recurrent source of tension between Baghdad and Ankara.
In a statement late Thursday, Iraq's foreign ministry said Ocalan's call for the group to lay down its arms was "a positive and important step towards achieving stability in the region".
It could contribute to "enhancing security not only in Iraq... but in the entire region", said the ministry.
The statement stressed that "political solutions and dialogue are the best way to resolve differences and end conflicts".
In a major shift, a declaration from Ocalan earlier on Thursday said that "all groups must lay down their arms and the PKK must dissolve itself".
The call, drawn up in Ocalan's cell in a Turkish prison where he has been held in solitary confinement since 1999, came four months after Ankara offered an olive branch to the 75-year-old militant leader.
In Iraq, the PKK holds positions in the autonomous Kurdistan region, where Turkey also maintains military bases and often carries out ground and air operations against the Kurdish militants.
Baghdad has recently sharpened its tone against the PKK, quietly listing it as a "banned organisation" last year.
However, Turkey wants Iraq to go further and officially declare it a terrorist group.
In August, Baghdad and Ankara signed a military cooperation deal to establish joint command and training centres with the aim of fighting the PKK.
In its Thursday statement, the Iraqi foreign ministry expressed hope that the PKK take "rapid steps" to lay down its weapons and emphasised the government's commitment to ensure "strong relations with neighbouring Turkey".
Iraqi Kurdistan president welcomes Ocalan's call, urges PKK to disarm
Arbil, Iraq (AFP) Feb 27, 2025 -
The president of Iraq's Kurdistan region, Nechirvan Barzani, welcomed Thursday jailed PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan's call for the Kurdish militant group to lay down its weapons and dissolve.
"We warmly welcome Ocalan's message... and we call on the PKK to adhere to and implement this message," Barzani said on X.
"We in the Kurdistan region fully support the peace process," he added, offering his support to ensure its success.
Ocalan said earlier that "all groups must lay down their arms and the PKK must dissolve itself" in a declaration drawn up in his cell on Imrali prison island where he has been held in solitary confinement since 1999.
The call came four months after Ankara offered an olive branch to the 75-year-old who founded the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has led a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state that has cost tens of thousands of lives.
The Barzani family is a crucial powerbroker in Kurdish affairs.
Earlier in February, pro-Kurdish Turkish lawmakers conveyed a message to Iraqi Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani, the president's uncle and the veteran head of the region's ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party.
Masoud Barzani reaffirmed his "full support" for the peace process Thursday "in every possible way."
He said he hoped Ocalan's message would "put the peace process on track" to "reach a result that is in the interest of all parties."
The other main party in the autonomous region, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, also welcomed Ocalan's call.
"We think it is a responsible and necessary call at this stage to unite the Kurds and resolve issues through peaceful dialogue," PUK leader Bafel Talabani said on X.
"We urge all parties to embrace this statement and take practical steps toward achieving comprehensive peace, seizing this historic opportunity."
Turkey has long accused the PUK of leniency towards PKK activities in Iraq.
Blacklisted as a terrorist organisation by Turkey and its Western allies, the PKK operates rear bases in Iraq's Kurdistan region, where Turkey also maintains military bases and often carries out air and ground operations against the Kurdish militants.
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