Türkiye says it is closely monitoring Iranian Kurdish militant group PJAK

Türkiye said on March 5 that it was closely monitoring the activities of the Kurdish militant group the Kurdistan Free Life Party (PJAK), warning that the group poses a threat to Iran’s security and broader regional stability.

Speaking at a weekly briefing, Türkiye’s defence ministry said state institutions were tracking the actions of PJAK, an outlawed group linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which Türkiye, the United States and the European Union designate as a terrorist organisation, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

"The activities of groups that fuel ethnic separatism, such as the terrorist organization PJAK, negatively affect not only Iran's security but also the overall peace and stability of the region," Türkiye's defence ministry said.

The statement came after sources told Reuters on March 3 that Iranian Kurdish groups had consulted with the United States about whether, and how, to attack Iran’s security forces in the country’s western regions.

Türkiye, a NATO member that shares a border with Iran, is currently pursuing efforts to secure peace with the PKK, an Iraq-based militant group that has waged an insurgency against the Turkish state for decades.

Ankara has also supported the integration of Syrian Kurdish militant groups into Syria’s state structures, and analysts say it is unlikely to back any potential U.S. cooperation with Iranian Kurdish militias.

PJAK operates mainly in Iran’s Kurdish-populated areas and is considered an offshoot of the PKK, maintaining ideological and organisational ties with the group.

By Sabina Mammadli