Türkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan after meeting Syria’s de-facto leader in Damascus on Sunday said there was no room for the PKK/YPG in Syria’s future, calling for the terrorist group to disband and stressing that Syria’s territorial integrity is “non-negotiable.”
Türkiye regards the YPG as an extension of the PKK, which fought the Turkish state in a four-decade terror campaign and is classified as a terrorist group by Ankara, Washington and the European Union.
Sunday’s visit to Damascus by Fidan, the first foreign minister to visit Damascus since Bashar Assad’s overthrow two weeks ago, came amid hostilities in northeast Syria between Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) and the YPG, which is backed by the United States under pretext of fighting Daesh terrorists. Ankara says the YPG is on par with Daesh and should have no presence in the new Syria.
Speaking alongside Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, Fidan said he had discussed the YPG presence with the new Syrian administration and believed Damascus would take steps to ensure Syria's territorial integrity and sovereignty.
"In the coming period, the YPG must come to a point where it is no longer a threat to Syria's national unity," Fidan said, adding the YPG should disband.
Fidan said the international community was "turning a blind eye" to the "illegality" of the YPG's actions in Syria, but added that he believed U.S. President-elect Donald Trump would take a different approach.
He said the new Syrian administration had told him during their talks that they could manage the Daesh prison camps, if needed.
In a Reuters interview on Thursday, YPG leader Ferhat Abdi Şahin, code-named "Mazloum Kobani," acknowledged the presence of PKK members in Syria for the first time, claiming they had helped Daesh and would return home if a total ceasefire was agreed with Türkiye.
In recent years, Türkiye has deployed troops and worked with local allies such as the opposition Syrian National Army (SNA) to prevent the YPG advance in the region and keep locals safe from terrorist oppression.
The SNA currently has the group cornered in northern Syria after taking back Tal Rifaat and Manbij, two key strongholds, from the PKK/YPG earlier this month, while anti-regime forces led their lightning offensive against Bashar Assad earlier this month.
Earlier, Türkiye's defense minister said Ankara believed Syria's new leadership, including the SNA, will drive YPG fighters from all of the territory they occupy in the northeast.
Ankara had for years backed opposition forces looking to oust Assad and welcomed the end of his family's brutal five-decade rule after a 13-year civil war. Türkiye also hosts millions of Syrian migrants that may return home after Assad's fall, and has vowed to help rebuild Syria.
Fidan said all international sanctions imposed against Assad must be lifted as soon as possible to help Syria start rebuilding, offering Ankara's assistance on matters such as infrastructure development.
For his part, al-Sharaa said that Syria will remember Türkiye’s contribution, saying: Our 'friendly country, Türkiye' has stood by Syrians since the beginning of the revolution ... We will never forget."
Earlier Saturday, in an interview with France 24, Fidan said that HTS had "excellent cooperation" with Ankara in the battle against Daesh and al-Qaida in the past through intelligence sharing. In the same interview, Fidan described the U.S. delegation's visit to Damascus as very significant, mentioning that prior to the U.S. officials' visit, European countries and global organizations had already met with the new administration.
"I think it is very significant. Before this visit, we've seen other European countries and international organizations visiting Damascus and contacting the new administration there. I think it is important," said Fidan in an interview with France 24 channel in the Turkish capital Ankara. Fidan also said on Saturday that Ankara is working to create an environment where Syrians can return to their country safely. "We are trying to work hard to create an environment in Syria where the refugees in Türkiye, as well as in other countries, can feel that voluntarily, safely, they can go back. We cannot dictate them, and we are not going to force them to go back," he added. He stated that there may certainly be a significant increase in returns to Syria in the coming period.
On Trump's remarks regarding the fall of Bashar Assad in Syria where he described Türkiye made an unfriendly takeover in Syria, Fidan said: "I think he was trying to compliment what had happened. But, we cannot characterize what happened in Syria as a takeover of Türkiye, on the contrary, if there is any takeover, it is a takeover of the will of the Syrian people."
On Friday, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan congratulated the Syrian people for their resilience against oppression, in a letter he penned for Syrians, which was sent to Türkiye’s southeastern neighbor with 75,000 aid boxes. “Together we will build the Syria of the future, filled with happiness, prosperity and peace,” Erdoğan said in the letter. The letter, translated into Arabic, was placed inside 75,000 aid boxes prepared by the Culture Ministry's General Directorate of Foundations. Reiterating Türkiye’s determination to stand in solidarity with Syrians, Erdoğan said they resisted oppression and made history. “You never despaired,” Erdoğan said in his letter, adding that the Syrians always had faith in God and sought his help, which ultimately led them to victory. The president continued by saying that the Syrian people are behind the victory and he salutes and congratulates them. Noting that Türkiye always supported their struggle against the Assad regime’s oppression, Erdoğan said the country would continue to support their struggle for development. “Today is a better day than yesterday and hopefully, tomorrow will be even better,” he said.
