Washington seeks Kurdish-Kurdish consensus to protect its forces
There is a sharp division between the two opposing Kurdish
sides in Syria, namely the US-allied Democratic Union Party (PYD) and the
Kurdish National Council (KNC), which considers its political authority to be
the leadership of the Kurdistan Region in Iraq.
American delegations
In the midst of this Kurdish-Kurdish dispute, Washington is
seeking to protect its forces in the region from any attacks.
The leadership of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region is politically
and financially supported by Turkey – the PYD’s archenemy –
as it is part of the Syrian opposition coalition that considers the US-backed
Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) a terrorist enemy.
Attempting to reach a solution, US and French diplomatic
delegations began conducting separate and collective negotiations between the PYD
and the KNC to achieve a Kurdish-Kurdish agreement in northern Syria, with the
goal of forming a new political body in favor of Washington that the Kurds are
part of.
Talks falter
The Russian Sputnik news agency reported on May 9 that US
Ambassador William Roebuck is leading the negotiations in the Syrian city of
Qamishli in the presence of a delegation from the French Foreign Ministry, but
the results of the meetings have been stalled in light of leaks that came out
of the first meeting. The PYD requires that KNC parties completely separate
from the opposition coalition based in Istanbul, while the KNC demands
permission for its Rojava Peshmerga militias to come from the Kurdistan Region
of Iraq to Syria’s Al-Hasakah province and establish a joint military force
with the Kurdish People’ Protection Units (YPG) led by the PYD.
According to sources, these negotiations were not
unexpected, as they come within the context of continuous efforts to bring the
Kurdish components closer; however, its timing reveals Washington's desire to
secure the areas where its forces are stationed, especially since village
residents have increasingly begun to harass them by throwing stones at US
military vehicles or preventing their passage. Although scarce, some residents
have even resisted with arms.
Kurdish-Syrian politician Walid Haj Abdul Qadir explained in
a statement published by Elaph on May 9 that the agreement is not the first, as
it was preceded by the first and second Erbil agreements and the Dohuk
agreement. He noted, however, that the dilemma is the fact that the PYD is
fully prepared to sign any paper document but in practice would not implement
anything on the ground.
According to reports by Al-Mayadeen Net, Washington has
intensified its political efforts in Syria to achieve two main goals: achieving
Kurdish-Kurdish reconciliation in preparation for creating a new opposition
platform to mitigate Ankara's concerns and paving the way for a Turkish
rapprochement with Syria's Kurds.
Kurdish academic Dr. Farid Saadoun views the continued US
attempts to achieve a Kurdish-Kurdish agreement as seeking to obtain results on
the ground, considering that Russia is also working to achieve a consensus by
gathering together many Kurdish parties.
Saadoun emphasized that the step to achieve a Kurdish
reconciliation in Syria would inevitably receive international, local and
governmental support, and it would be an important step for achieving stability
in a large portion of Syria.
Turkish reaction
Regarding Turkey’s reaction to the dialogue, Al-Monitor
reported on May 13 that the Kurdish-Kurdish dialogue will have positive
repercussions internally and internationally on the Kurdish issue, which has
spread beyond Turkey's borders and cannot be resolved through internal
political dynamics in Turkey.
