Kurdish Administration Reiterates Call for Decentralized Syria after Damascus Meeting
After the Syrian government utterly rejected decentralization system, the Kurdish parties had reiterated their demand of an approach that provides them with a measure of their de facto autonomy, according to Arab News.
Syria’s Rejection of Decentralization
In March, Syria’s President Ahmad Al-Sharaa and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Chief Mazloum Abdi signed an agreement to integrate the civil and military institutions of Kurds into the Syrian government.
However, the implementation of this deal was held up by differences between both parties.
On Wednesday, the pair held a meeting with a US envoy to discuss the stalled efforts. During the meeting, the new government stressed its rejection to “any form of division or federalization.” It also urged SDF fighters to integrate into the army.
Kurdish Call for Decentralized Syria
Meanwhile, the Kurdish administration called “for a pluralistic democratic system, social justice, gender equality, and a constitution that guarantees the rights of all components” of society.
“Syrians have suffered for decades from a centralized system that monopolized power and wealth, suppressed local will, and dragged the country into successive crises,” the statement said on Sunday.
The Kurds expressed their aspiration of being “effective partners in building a new Syria, a decentralized Syria that embraces all its people and guarantees their rights equally.”
Significant Kurdish Conference
In May, Kurdish parties hosted a significant conference to introduce a unified vision for the country’s future after the ousting of Bashar Assad, according to AFP.
As a major component of Syria, Kurds “must present a solution and a project proposal for the future of Syria,” Eldar Khalil, an official in the Kurdish Democratic Union Party, said.
Moreover, Abdi called for “a new decentralized constitution that includes all components” of society.
“We support all Syrian components receiving their rights in the constitution to be able to build a decentralized democratic Syria that embraces everyone,” he added.
Turkish Opposition to Decentralization
Turkey has also rejected any plans that may undermine Syria’s central government or threaten its sovereignty and territorial integrity, according to Reuters.
“Turkey does not accept any initiative that targets Syria’s territorial integrity, that will damage its sovereignty, or that allows weapons to be carried by others not in the Syrian central authority,” a Turkish Foreign Ministry source said.
Moreover, President Tayyip Erdogan said in May that decentralization demands in Syria were “nothing more than a raw dream.”
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