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Ankara reiterated concerns over the future of Syria in case of separatism threats as the National Security Council convened on Wednesday in the Turkish capital.
A statement by the council following the meeting chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said preventing attacks targeting Syria’s sovereignty remains a priority.
“It was emphasized that preventing attacks and occupations targeting Syria’s sovereignty, as well as all kinds of separatist, destructive and divisive activities, is of a high priority, especially as there are attempts to drag Syria back into a spiral of violence and chaos,” the national security body said in a statement.
The statement also said that developments in Syria were thoroughly addressed, reaffirming that support for the Syrian government’s efforts aimed at ensuring the country’s unity, territorial integrity and stability will continue.
Following the fall of the Baathist regime last December, Türkiye elevated its ties with the new administration and has been hopeful that the U.S.-backed terrorist group YPG active in country’s northeast would either dissolve or join Syria’s new army. The YPG, the Syrian wing of terrorist group PKK, which began disarmament earlier this month, retains self-styled “autonomy” in an area close to Syrian-Turkish border.
The YPG seems to be on the same page with the new administration in Damascus about a centralized government despite previous statements refusing to lay down weapons like the PKK.
“We defend the slogan ‘one army, one government, one state,’” the group’s ringleader, Ferhat Abdi Şahin, told Saudi Arabian news channels Al-Hadath and Al-Arabiya in an interview released Tuesday.
“We are all agreed on the unity of Syria,” Şahin claimed, echoing a concern shared by Türkiye, which has been on high alert against the security risks posed by the YPG. The YPG was openly supported by the U.S., which had designated the PKK as a terrorist group years ago. Washington justified the armament of the YPG as part of its anti-Daesh coalition.
The YPG took control of parts of northeastern Syria after the civil war broke out in Türkiye’s southern neighbor more than a decade ago. Türkiye launched a cross-border offensive during the civil war to limit the expansion of the YPG and succeeded in confining it to a narrower area.
The YPG, which is called the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) by its main partner, the United States, managed to negotiate a deal with the new administration in Damascus. The deal, which involves the integration of the YPG into the new army of the country, is not final and the YPG’s high-ranking leaders, including Şahin, have repeatedly rejected “submission” to Damascus by disarming. Using the recent Druze unrest that erupted after Israel’s instigation in Suwayda as an excuse, the group also demanded “autonomy” under the guise of “decentralization.” With Israeli encouragement, they sought to build a bridge between the Druze and the YPG.
“The YPG is committed to the March 10 deal, but its implementation will take time. Integrating 100,000 fighters into the Syrian Defense Ministry is a major operation,” Şahin said in an apparent about-face.
He said Damascus has formally demanded the return of government facilities in Raqqa, Hassakah and Deir el-Zour, northern cities the YPG occupies. “In return, Damascus is prepared to approve our demands for Kurdish language and cultural rights,” Şahin said.
Şahin’s remarks follow Ankara’s warnings to “intervene” if the YPG refuses to comply with the integration agreement and follow the PKK’s example in dissolving itself.
“It’s time to integrate. Türkiye hopes no one attempts to divide Syria because we will intervene,” Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said last week.
Şahin’s remarks also come after the U.S. has admitted the group is an offshoot of the PKK and that Washington does “not owe the group an autonomous administration within an existing state.”
”The YPG aims to turn the ‘cease-fire’ in northeastern Syria into comprehensive peace,” he said, adding that the YPG was in “constant” contact with both Damascus and Türkiye.
Israel’s attacks
The National Security Council also discussed the political and military consequences of Israel’s attack on Iran, according to the statement, which stressed that new tensions and conflicts should be avoided in the Middle East, “a region already afflicted by serious fragilities.”
The statement reiterated its call for the global community to take responsibility and take action to immediately stop the Israeli administration, “which, by violating international law and targeting Iran after Palestine, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen, continues its genocide and crimes against humanity in Gaza and seeks to drag the region into catastrophe.”
Expressing concern over signs of escalation in the Russia-Ukraine war, the statement reaffirmed Türkiye’s readiness to take responsibility and contribute in every possible way to the establishment of a lasting peace.
