Kurds plan Damascus talks as visions for Syria collide
Aldar Xelil of Democratic Union Party (PYD) attends an interview with Reuters at his office in Hasaka, Syria, May 21, 2025. REUTERS/Orhan Qereman
HASAKEH, Syria - Syrian Kurdish parties will send a delegation to Damascus soon for talks over their region's political future, a leading Kurdish politician said, as they seek to advance their goal of regional autonomy despite opposition from the Islamist rulers.
More than six months after Bashar al-Assad was toppled, Kurdish demands for regional autonomy have emerged as one of the main fault lines in the new Syria, opposed by interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and his powerful allies in neighbouring Turkey.
Oppressed by Assad, rival Syrian Kurdish groups last month issued a shared vision calling for the unification of the Kurdish regions as a political and administrative unit within a federal Syria, aiming to safeguard Kurdish gains during the war.
"Our Kurdish vision document will be the basis for negotiations with Damascus. The delegation is close to being ready to negotiate with Damascus," Aldar Xelil, a member of the presidential council of the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the dominant faction in northeastern Syria, told Reuters.
But he added: "We may face some difficulties because their position is still inflexible."
His comments point to the limited progress in bridging gaps between the sides since they signed a deal in March aimed at integrating the Kurdish-led security forces and other governing bodies in northeastern Syria with the central state in Damascus.
The Kurdish-led authorities have already had contacts with Damascus, including via a committee tasked with discussing the future of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, a powerful security force backed by the United States.
Last month's Kurdish declaration was adopted by both the PYD and its main rival, the Kurdish National Council (ENKS).
'WE SEEK DISCUSSION'
Following the declaration, Sharaa's office issued a statement rejecting any attempt "to impose a partition or create separatist cantons" without a national consensus.
The Kurdish groups have in turn rejected the transitional arrangements drawn up by his administration, including a constitutional declaration that focused power in Sharaa's hands and strengthened the role of Islamic law.
Xelil described the steps taken by Damascus as unilateral but added: "We seek discussion and participation."
Calls for federal rule have gathered momentum in Syria since March's mass killings of members of the Alawite minority by Islamist militants in western Syria's coastal region, with some Alawites also calling for decentralized rule.
Xelil said the role of the Kurdish-led security forces was to ensure the "security and safety of this region" and if this is "not guaranteed constitutionally, legally, and politically, then discussing the issue of weapons will be futile".
Turkey, which has emerged with big influence in the new Syria, has long opposed Syrian Kurdish autonomy. After last month's announcement, President Tayyip Erdogan dismissed calls for federalism as "nothing more than a raw dream".
Turkey's suspicion of the dominant Syrian Kurdish group stems from its ties to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which earlier this month decided to dissolve itself and end decades of armed struggle with Turkey.
Xelil said he expected the PKK move to impact Turkey's position on Syria.
"Turkey viewed the presence of the PKK or groups influenced by it as a pretext for attacking northeastern Syria," he said. "There will be no pretext for Turkey to attack the region." REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
23 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Trump releases Martin Luther King assassination files
FILE PHOTO: People walk by the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, ahead of the presidential inauguration of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, in Washington, U.S., January 16, 2025. REUTERS/Marko Djurica/File Photo WASHINGTON - The U.S. Justice Department on Monday released more than 240,000 pages of documents related to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., including records from the FBI, which had surveilled the civil rights leader as part of an effort to discredit the Nobel Peace Prize winner and his civil rights movement. Files were posted on the website of the National Archives, which said more would be released. King died of an assassin's bullet in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968, as he increasingly extended his attention from a nonviolent campaign for equal rights for African Americans to economic issues and calls for peace. His death shook the United States in a year that would also bring race riots, anti-Vietnam war demonstrations and the assassination of presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy. Earlier this year, President Donald Trump's administration released thousands of pages of digital documents related to the assassinations of Robert Kennedy and former President John F. Kennedy, who was killed in 1963. Trump promised on the campaign trail to provide more transparency about Kennedy's death. Upon taking office, he also ordered aides to present a plan for the release of records relating to the assassinations of Robert Kennedy and King. The FBI kept files on King in the 1950s and 1960s - even wiretapping his phones - because of what the bureau falsely said at the time were his suspected ties to communism during the Cold War between the U.S. and Soviet Union. In recent years, the FBI has acknowledged that as an example of "abuse and overreach" in its history. The civil rights leader's family asked those who engage with the files to "do so with empathy, restraint, and respect for our family's continuing grief," and condemned "any attempts to misuse these documents." Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. World US President Trump 'caught off guard' by Israel's strikes in Syria Singapore LTA seeks tailored solutions to improve Bukit Panjang LRT's maintenance inspections Opinion Singapore's vaping crisis lays bare the drug addiction nightmare for parents Singapore Subsidies and grants for some 20,000 people miscalculated due to processing issue: MOH Multimedia 'It's very sad': She comforts loved ones turned away by inmates Opinion Sumiko at 61: 7 facts about facial skin ageing, and skincare ingredients that actually work Opinion With Shatec cutting back operations, what's next for the hospitality sector? Life Cosby Show star Malcolm-Jamal Warner dies by drowning at 54 "Now more than ever, we must honor his sacrifice by committing ourselves to the realization of his dream – a society rooted in compassion, unity, and equality," they said in a statement. "During our father's lifetime, he was relentlessly targeted by an invasive, predatory, and deeply disturbing disinformation and surveillance campaign orchestrated by J. Edgar Hoover through the Federal Bureau of Investigation," the family, including his two living children, Martin III, 67, and Bernice, 62, said, referring to the then-FBI director. James Earl Ray, a segregationist and drifter, confessed to killing King but later recanted. He died in prison in 1998. King's family said it had filed a wrongful death civil lawsuit in Tennessee in 1999 that led to a jury unanimously concluding "that our father was the victim of a conspiracy involving Loyd Jowers and unnamed co-conspirators, including government agencies as a part of a wider scheme. The verdict also affirmed that someone other than James Earl Ray was the shooter, and that Mr. Ray was set up to take the blame. Our family views that verdict as an affirmation of our long-held beliefs." Jowers, once a Memphis police officer, told ABC's Prime Time Live in 1993 that he participated in a plot to kill King. A 2023 Justice Department report called his claims dubious. REUTERS
CNA
23 minutes ago
- CNA
Taiwan's CPC denies 'specific' US shale gas acquisition talks
TAIPEI :Taiwan's state-owned energy company CPC Corp said it is not in talks for "specific" shale gas fields in the United States, but it does not rule out any prospective partners and will make the most favourable decision based on its own evaluations. CPC is in early stage discussions to buy shale-gas producing assets in the United States, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters earlier this month, in a bid to secure natural gas supplies to fuel Taiwan's economy. In a statement late on Monday, CPC said U.S. shale gas has long been an important target area for the company because of its high quality, mature extraction technology and favourable investment environment. "CPC will not rule out any prospective partners and will make the most favourable decision based on the evaluation results," it said. "As for reports that CPC is in the process of discussing the acquisition of specific shale gas fields in the United States, that is not true," the company added, without elaboration. Taiwan has pledged to increase its purchase of energy from the United States as a way of reducing its yawning trade surplus and head off tariffs. In March, CPC signed an agreement with Alaska Gasline Development Corp to buy LNG and invest in the Alaska LNG project which will transport gas south from Alaska's remote north via pipeline, to be shipped as LNG to Taiwan, Japan and South Korea.
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Washington says China will not let US government employee leave the country
Find out what's new on ST website and app. FILE PHOTO: A Chinese flag flutters on top of the Great Hall of the People, in Beijing, China October 18, 2023. REUTERS/Edgar Su/File Photo WASHINGTON - The U.S. State Department said on Monday that the Chinese government had blocked a U.S. Patent and Trademark Office employee visiting the Asian country in a personal capacity from leaving. "We are tracking this case very closely and are engaged with Chinese officials to resolve the situation as quickly as possible," a State Department spokesperson said. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office is part of the federal Department of Commerce. The individual's name and whether the person was detained were not disclosed. The Chinese embassy in Washington and the U.S. Commerce Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The Washington Post reported on Sunday that a U.S. citizen who works for the Commerce Department had traveled to China several months ago to visit family. The man was being prevented from leaving the country after he failed to disclose on his visa application that he worked for the U.S. government, the newspaper said, citing sources. Beijing has used exit bans on both Chinese and foreign nationals in connection with civil disputes, regulatory enforcement and criminal investigations. Analysts say the tactic is at times used to crack down on local dissent and also as diplomatic leverage in disputes with other nations. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. World US President Trump 'caught off guard' by Israel's strikes in Syria Singapore LTA seeks tailored solutions to improve Bukit Panjang LRT's maintenance inspections Opinion Singapore's vaping crisis lays bare the drug addiction nightmare for parents Singapore Subsidies and grants for some 20,000 people miscalculated due to processing issue: MOH Multimedia 'It's very sad': She comforts loved ones turned away by inmates Opinion Sumiko at 61: 7 facts about facial skin ageing, and skincare ingredients that actually work Business Why Singapore and its businesses stand to lose with US tariffs on the region Opinion With Shatec cutting back operations, what's next for the hospitality sector? Washington and Beijing have had friction for years over issues ranging from tariffs to the origins of COVID-19 and Taiwan. Chenyue Mao, a Wells Fargo banker, has also been blocked from leaving China. Beijing's foreign ministry said on Monday she was involved in a criminal case and obliged to cooperate with an investigation. Mao was the latest of several executives from foreign corporations to be stopped as they tried to depart China. The U.S. bank suspended all employee travel to China after Mao's exit ban, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters last week, saying Mao was a U.S. citizen. REUTERS
