Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli has called his unexpected handshake with Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) officials an act of "brotherhood rather than the start of a new political process."
"It is well-known where those who take my extended hand out of context and drag it to other channels want to go," Bahçeli told MHP members in Ankara on Oct. 15.
A parliamentary session on Oct. 1 concluded with Bahçeli shaking hands with pro-Kurdish DEM Party co-chair Tuncer Bakırhan and several other MPs.
“Those who draw different conclusions from the hand I extended and make fabricated interpretations have surely fallen into the clutches of error and mistake,” Bahçeli said.
"We extend our hand not for a new process, but for brotherhood."
The MHP leader urged all political parties to prioritize the country's interests. "Today is a day of unity, today is a day of solidarity," he stated.
"There is room for everyone in the hearts of the Nationalist Movement Party and the [ruling] People's Alliance. Our heart is open to everyone who calls these lands homeland."
Bahçeli also issued a warning to the DEM Party, cautioning them against interpreting the gesture as a concession. "The state does not negotiate with a terrorist organization," he added.
