Erdogan says impossible to continue peace process with Kurdish militants

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday it was impossible to continue a peace process with Kurdish militants and that politicians with links to "terrorist groups" should be stripped of their immunity from prosecution.

"It is not possible for us to continue the peace process with those who threaten our national unity and brotherhood," Erdogan told a news conference ahead of his departure on an official visit to China.

Erdogan also said a "secure zone" in northern Syria, which Turkey and the United States are in talks about establishing, would pave the way for the return of 1.7 million Syria refugees currently being sheltered in Turkey.