IN JULY SOME 30 members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), an armed group designated as a terrorist organisation by the European Union and America, laid down their weapons in a symbolic ceremony in northern Iraq. The disarmament under way is welcome and marks a historic opportunity to break a cycle of violence that has long burdened the country’s political system, slowed economic progress and deepened divisions. It also presents a golden opportunity for Turkey to reframe its regional role.
