On Sunday, January 4, a meeting took place in Damascus between representatives of the interim government of Syria and the leadership of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The parties discussed the mechanism for uniting Kurdish formations with the national army, but, according to state media reports, "tangible results" were not achieved, writes UNN.
Details
According to an agreement signed in March 2025 under the auspices of interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, the SDF was to join the country's armed forces by the end of the year. The main stumbling block remains the format of integration:
SDF position: maintaining units as a single structure within the army.
Damascus's position: disbanding Kurdish detachments and individually absorbing their fighters into regular units.
Course of negotiations
The SDF delegation at the talks was led by Commander-in-Chief Mazloum Abdi. After the meeting, representatives of the Kurdish forces stated that the details of the discussion would be released later. At the same time, Syrian state television emphasized that there is currently no progress that would accelerate the implementation of the agreement.
The SDF, which is supported by the US and controls the northeast of the country, numbers tens of thousands of experienced fighters. Their inclusion in the army is considered a key stage in the stabilization of Syria after the change of power. The parties agreed to continue consultations in the near future.