Erdoğan and Bahçeli meet in the shadow of 'rift in People's Alliance' claims

The meeting between AKP Chairman and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Chairman Devlet Bahçeli at the Beştepe Presidential Complex has concluded.

There had been ongoing speculation regarding tension between the two leaders following Bahçeli's call for PKK terrorist organization leader Abdullah Öcalan to speak in Parliament, with claims that there was a "rift within the People's Alliance over the Öcalan statement."

Among other claims was that Erdoğan, although he supported Bahçeli in his statements without mentioning Öcalan's name, was not aware of this call beforehand.

The meeting between the two leaders took place in Beştepe under the shadow of these claims. This also marked their first one-on-one meeting since Bahçeli's call regarding Öcalan.

BAHÇELİ VIDEO SHARED FROM MHP ACCOUNT BECOMES A TALKING POINT

The previous evening, the MHP's official social media account released a video highlighting Bahçeli, who sparked controversy by calling for Abdullah Öcalan to address Parliament, with the message, "Sometimes you are left alone, even your closest ones do not understand you."

MHP Deputy Chairman Semih Yalçın, in a statement to journalist Nagehan Alçı, rejected the claim of a "rift within the People's Alliance over the Öcalan statement," stating, "There is no issue that the President and Mr. Bahçeli cannot agree on or resolve when they come together. There is absolutely no problem between them. The claims put forward are merely attempts to sow discord."

BAHÇELİ'S SHARP REACTION TO 'DISAGREEMENT' QUESTION

When asked, "Is there a disagreement between you and President Erdoğan regarding the solution process?" Devlet Bahçeli reacted sharply, saying, "First of all, my fellow members of the press, stop inciting Turkey with information that fuels discrimination. If you cannot do that, quit your profession."