With the approach of local elections in Turkey, proclaimed a “matter of survival” by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the absence of one thing is striking: armed attacks by the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK). According to the Turkish government, the calm stems from its efforts in the fight against terror, but others believe it is not a matter of the PKK's capacity, but a strategic choice on the organization's part.

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu summarized Turkey’s fight against the PKK in 2018 in an assessment delivered to parliament in November: “We conducted 87,838 operations against the PKK and [killed] 1,289 terrorists. Our field operations over the past two years have gone up three times compared with earlier periods. With our field pressure, the PKK’s armed attacks — which reached 965 in 2017 — declined to 677 in 2018, while their [land]mine and improvised explosive device attacks were reduced to 148 from 250.”

Soylu further stated, “The decline in armed clashes is especially significant as it shows their loss of attack capability. Also, the number of terrorists in Turkey, which had been around 2,500, decreased by 69%, to around 750-880. The organization's recruitment is now at its lowest in 30 years. In 2015, 3,881 people joined the organization; the number last year was a meager 95.”

Soylu credited the decrease in the number of Kurdish fighters to a significant increase in the operational mobility of Turkish security forces and the resulting increased pressure on the PKK. The declining ranks of the PKK also suggest reduced interest in joining the organization. Soylu claimed that the PKK has almost reached the end of the line in Turkey.