TEHERAN - Iran on Tuesday welcomed the Kurdistan Workers' Party's (PKK) announcement of its self-dissolution, calling it a significant move toward ending violence and fostering regional security.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said in a statement that the decision marked "an important step" away from armed conflict, expressing hope that the process would help advance peace and stability in Türkiye and the broader region.

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The statement came a day after the PKK declared it would disband and cease its decades-long armed insurgency. The move follows a February call from jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan urging the group to lay down its arms.

Designated a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the United States, and the European Union, the PKK has waged a four-decade insurgency against the Turkish state, initially seeking an independent Kurdish state.

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Ankara frequently carries out cross-border military operations against the PKK in northern Iraq, where the group maintains its headquarters and hideouts, and targets its affiliates in Syria.