'A terror-free Turkey paves the way for intensifying integration within the Turkic world'
In a significant move towards regional stability and integration, Turkey has launched the "Terror-free Turkey" initiative, aimed at ending the decades-long PKK insurgency. This initiative, according to Deputy Chair of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party), Kürşad Zorlu, has profound economic and geopolitical implications for the Turkic world.
Economically, the initiative is expected to enhance Turkey’s domestic security environment, encouraging investment, boosting tourism, and fostering development, particularly in the southeast regions most affected by conflict. Greater internal peace amplifies economic growth potential and supports Turkey’s broader "Century of Türkiye" vision, which emphasizes economic reform and technological progress as pillars of national development.
Geopolitically, the initiative's success would reinforce Turkey’s leadership role in Turkic affairs by demonstrating its ability to resolve longstanding internal conflicts, thus consolidating its image as a stable power. Peace in Turkey could facilitate deeper economic and political ties with other Turkic countries in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and beyond, through increased trade, energy projects, and security cooperation. The peaceful resolution of the PKK conflict also removes a destabilizing factor from the region, improving Turkey’s strategic posture.
The initiative involves a phased peace plan, including the complete disarmament of PKK fighters and drafting legal frameworks for their reintegration, supported by a parliamentary commission representing multiple political parties. This consensus-building effort aims to secure lasting peace and social cohesion domestically, which directly underpins Turkey's capacity for sustained geopolitical engagement in the Turkic world.
Meanwhile, trade among Turkic states has surged sixfold over the past two decades, and their share of global trade has risen by 70%, reaching 2.42% in 2024. The number of companies with Turkic state capital in Turkey has also increased dramatically, from virtually none in 2002 to 5,405 by March 2025.
Zorlu stated that Turkey is determined to lead the process of binding the Turkic world together, moving forward shoulder to shoulder with sister states. The Organization of Turkic States (OTS), in which Turkey is a driving force, continues to grow in influence beyond its regional borders. A meeting in Ankara, attended by 15 public institutions, aimed to strengthen coordination, pool resources, and unite around common projects for the Turkic world.
With the PKK terrorist group announcing its dissolution last year and beginning disarmament in July 2021, the combined GDP of OTS member states is expected to surpass $3 trillion by 2030, potentially making the OTS the eighth-largest economic bloc globally. This economic power, coupled with Turkey's geopolitical influence, positions the country to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of the Turkic world.
In conclusion, the "terror-free Turkey" initiative is designed not only to end violence domestically but also to enable Turkey to project a stronger, more stable geopolitical strategy across the Turkic world, with positive ripple effects on economic integration and regional security. The initiative's success could mark a new era of stability and prosperity for Turkey and the Turkic world.
- The "Terror-free Turkey" initiative, if successful, could strengthen Turkey's leadership role in the Turkic world, demonstrating its ability to resolve internal conflicts and improve its strategic posture.
- Geopolitically, the success of the initiative could facilitate deeper economic and political ties with other Turkic countries, amplifying Turkey's influence beyond its regional borders.
- Economic growth potential in Turkey is anticipated to increase due to the initiative, encouraging investment, boosting tourism, and fostering development, especially in the southeast.
- The peaceful resolution of the PKK conflict could potentially lead to the Organization of Turkic States becoming the eighth-largest economic bloc globally, positioning Turkey to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of the Turkic world.
