Roundup: Turkey steps up fight against terrorist groups

Turkish military's assault on terrorist groups has continued unabated with fighter jets pounding Kurdish militant groups in the southern part of the country on Tuesday.

Two F-16 fighter planes bombed targets of the outlawed Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) in the southeastern province of Sirnak near the border with Iraq on Tuesday, according to The office of General Chief of Staff.

The Turkish jets scrambled upon an artillery fire from the PKK side that targeted Turkish Special Forces that were sent as reinforcement to the border patrol.

The Turkish military has so far staged seven cross-border operations to bomb PKK and Islamic State (IS) targets both inside Iraq and Syria.

The crackdown on the PKK and other terrorist groups, including the IS, started more than a week ago, when terrorist groups started attacking Turkish interests, which included a suspected IS suicide bombing that killed 32 people in border town Suruc on July 20.

On Tuesday, NATO expressed solidarity with its member state Turkey in the fight against terror groups, after Ankara called for an emergency meeting in Brussels. "We stand in strong solidarity with our ally Turkey," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said before the meeting.

The NATO statement underlined that "terrorism poses a direct threat to the security of NATO countries and to international stability and prosperity."

Turkish officials have sounded hawkish on going after terrorist groups, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan saying that "At the moment, Turkey has come under attack and is exercising its right to defend itself and will exercise this right until the end."

Before his departure for China visit, the president also raised the possibility of establishing a "secure zone" in northern Syria, which will pave the way for the return of around two million Syrian refugees from Turkey.

He also remarked that Turkish and U.S. officials have been holding talks on that subject with a view to clear the IS from border areas and make a safe place for refugee settlement.

Ankara, which has been pushing for the establishment of a safe zone inside Syria for some time, appears to have secured an interim deal from Washington after it allowed expanded access for the U.S.-led coalition to the use of the key Incirlik air base in the southern province Adana.

Nevertheless, Turkey's fight with the PKK, whose Syrian offshoot Democratic Union Party (PYD) has been battling the IS in the north of Syria, has caused some concerns both domestically and globally.

"One drawback of the anti-PKK operations of the Turkish security, especially of those in Iraq, is it causes concerns among the U.S. and European decision makers," political analyst Murat Yetkin warned.

He said the reason for that is Turkey may jeopardize cooperation of the PYD against the IS.

The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United State and the European Union, but the PYD is not and is seen as sympathetic by the West because it fights with the IS.

"There is no difference between the PKK and IS," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has vowed recently.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has tried to strike a different note by saying that Ankara would treat the PYD and the PKK differently unless the PYD commits any "disturbing" actions against Turkey.

TURKEY'S PEACE PROCESS WITH KURDS AT RISK

On domestic front, Turkey's fragile settlement process with the PKK to end the decades-long Kurdish problem was placed at risk because of the offensive against the PKK.

On Tuesday, Erdogan declared the process that started in 2012 is over and urged the lifting of immunities for lawmaker from the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), which is known to have ties with the PKK.

In the latest elections on June 7, the HDP garnered 13 percent of the popular votes and won 80 seats in Turkish Parliament. Its popularity has cost Erdogan's dream for executive presidency and paved the way for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) to lose the majority in Parliament.

Turkish analysts believe Erdogan and his allies in the AKP hope to ride on nationalist fever to regain its lost strength in a likely snap election in November.

That no coalition government has been formed since the election has resulted in no clear winner, raising the chance for a possible early election.

Turkey's European allies have expressed uneasiness on ending the settlement talks with the PKK, with German Chancellor Angela Merkel urging the Turkish prime minister not to give up on the Kurdish settlement process.

The European Commission that monitors Turkey's accession talks to the union also repeats its emphasis on keeping the settlement process alive.

"The military's offensive in northern Iraq will make a peaceful settlement of the Kurdish issue nearly impossible," Serkan Demirtas, a Ankara-based political observer, concluded. Endit