PYD leader foresees “Democratic Nation” as solution for Syria
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The only solution for Syria is a democratic nation, where different Syrian communities can coexist, said Saleh Muslim, co-chair of the Democratic Union Party (PYD).
The “Democratic Nation” is a theory that was developed and adopted by Abdullah Ocalan, leader of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) who has given a life imprisonment by Turkey since 1999. Under this theory, the society can express itself and to gain freedom and equality. The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) has adopted the “Democratic Nation” theory as a basis to work on and build its governance in the region.
In his exclusive statement to North Press Muslim noted that “Turkey’s insistence on occupation” prevents any kind of stability in the region, since it cannot accept the presence of “Democratic Nation” on its boarder on the pretext of protecting its national security.
Ever since Turkey started its first military operation in Syria in August 2016, starting from Jarablus in northeastern Aleppo, the threats of a Turkish invasion along the entire Syrian-Turkish border have persisted.
These threats are justified by Turkey’s aim to compact the outlawed PKK which perceives as a threat to its national security.
Despite Turkey’s claims that the AANES and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are under the influence of the PKK, and that the PYD is a PKK offshoot, Muslim has called for a peaceful agreement with all parties.
Regarding Syrian-Turkey normalization, the PYD leader ruled out the presence of any near agreement between the governments of Turkey and Syria similar to Adana Agreement due to the presence of numerous unresolved issues and Turkey’s insistence on targeting and occupying AANES-held areas.
Adana Agreement was signed between Syria and Turkey on Oct. 20, 1998 during which Turkey imposed its conditions through consensus on the border dispute which means that Syria had ceded the Sanjak of Alexandretta to Turkey. The agreement was primarily about how to get rid of the PKK from Syria.
Responding to a question about PYD’s relations with the Syrian opposition, Muslim said that the responsibility of engaging with the opposition lies with the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC). He emphasized that there is a signed understanding between the SDC and the opposition’s Coordination Committee.