SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday received the Imrali delegation to discuss the ongoing peace process between the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and the Turkish state.

Erdogan received a delegation from the Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) consisting of MPs Pervin Buldan and Sirri Surreyya Onder, who were also a part of the Imrali delegation visiting jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan in January.

The meeting materialized a day after the Turkish president said on Wednesday that he will receive the DEM Party delegation "tomorrow," during his party's parliamentary group meeting.

"He will share his views and suggestions and so will we," Onder told reporters before the high-profile meeting, "we trust that both political democracy, peace and activities relevant to this from now on will continue with much faster and more qualified steps, we can say that much for now."

"I want to underline that this is an important meeting, because possibly for the first time the president will have a meeting with us on this subject," Buldan noted, adding that "he [Erdogan] will share his views with us on what should be done, and we will brief him on all the meetings we have held so far... may it bring peace."

The PKK is an armed group that has fought for increased Kurdish rights in Turkey for decades. The group is designated a terrorist organization by Ankara. 

Following an October proposal by the now indisposed Turkish Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahceli to free Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Ocalan in exchange for the PKK laying down arms, a mediating delegation by DEM Party spoke to the jailed PKK leader on the prison island of Imrali. Bahceli's initiative was immediately endorsed by the Turkish president.

The two DEM Party MPs led the first delegation visiting Ocalan in the Imrali and participated in a second meeting later on in February as well, ultimately leading to a peace address by the jailed PKK leader, prompting the PKK to declare a unilateral ceasefire with Turkey to "pave the way" for the call.

Millions across Turkey – Turks and Kurds alike- are looking ahead with renewed hope that a lasting solution will be found to permanently resolve the conflict that has spanned decades and claimed tens of thousands of lives.