The alliance commission of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) will meet tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. to discuss the details of possible joint steps.
The alliance was formed to join forces in the 2019 presidential elections. MHP Chairman Devlet Bahçeli previously announced that they will not nominate a candidate, instead agreeing to back President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan who will run for the AK Party. "The MHP will act in accordance with the Yenikapı spirit and will support Recep Tayyip Erdoğan," Bahçeli said on Jan. 8. The announcement was welcomed by the ruling party and talks were held to discuss a future alliance.
The AK Party named its spokesman Mahir Ünal, Justice Minister Abdülhamit Gül and Mustafa Şentop as its representatives in the alliance committee, while the MHP named deputies Mehmet Parsak, Mustafa Kalaycı and Faruk Aksu.
Discussing the budding political alliance between the MHP and the AKP, Bahçeli said some political circles want to undermine the alliance by making allegations that the Kurdish people will no longer vote for the AK Party, as they tried to present the MHP as an anti-Kurdish party.
Speaking at the MHP's parliamentary group meeting yesterday, Bahçeli strongly criticized the allegations by saying "Kurdish people are our brothers," and added that the anti-Kurdish rhetoric will not pay off.
