, told the Bianet news website that Turkey should “keep its hands off” Syria if Ankara wants the renewed peace efforts at home to succeed.){kind=link}
Salih Muslim, a senior figure in Syria’s Kurdish-led Democratic Union Party (PYD), told the Bianet news website that Turkey should “keep its hands off” Syria if Ankara wants the renewed peace efforts at home to succeed.
Muslim said Turkey is trying to tie the peace talks in Turkey to Syria because Ankara sees the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) as linked to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), the outlawed armed group that has fought the Turkish state for decades.
He argued that the two tracks should be handled separately and said the outcome in Turkey will depend on Turkey’s “internal dynamics,” while Syrian Kurds support the efforts in Turkey.
Muslim spoke as Syria’s transitional government and the US-backed SDF face a deadline to implement a March 10 accord that set out a path to integrate the SDF’s military and civil structures into Syrian state institutions by the end of 2025.
In the interview Muslim said Turkey tried to block the March 10 deal because Ankara was not part of it, then shifted tone once it became clear that both sides would proceed.
He pointed to clashes that broke out in the Aleppo neighborhoods after Turkey’s foreign and defense ministers visited Syria and said Damascus’ willingness to follow through on the agreement depends in part on whether it can distance itself from Turkey’s influence.
Muslim repeated the SDF’s position that Syria should adopt a decentralized system and said talks should focus first on drafting an inclusive constitution that protects ethnic and religious communities.
He also claimed Islamic State group sleeper cells remain a threat and said people aligned with the group have joined the Syrian security forces.
On contacts with Turkey, Muslim said SDF channels with Ankara remain open through Syria’s capital and argued that opening border crossings would benefit both sides.