Imprisoned Kurdish leader Abdullah Öcalan has called on the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) to surrender its weapons, potentially ending a 40-year-long conflict with Turkey and bringing stability to the region. A delegation from Turkey’s pro-Kurdish DEM Party met with Öcalan at his island prison on Thursday and later released a statement. In a letter, Öcalan stated, “I am calling for disarmament” and urged the PKK to formally dissolve itself through a congress. Turkey, the U.S., the EU, and other entities classify the PKK as a terrorist organization. Since the group launched its armed struggle for Kurdish self-rule in 1984, more than 40,000 people have been killed. While the PKK initially fought for an independent Kurdish state, its demands have since shifted to regional autonomy.