Syrian issues will be resolved if Euphrates’ East and West agree, Mazloum Abdi

QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – In the event of an agreement between the East and West of the Euphrates under international sponsorship, all the issues in Syria will be resolved in due course, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Commander-in-Chief Mazloum Abdi, told the Washington Institute for Near East Policy yesterday.  

“We do not accept a return to the past. The Autonomous Administration has existed for ten years, and they must accept it constitutionally,” Abdi said.

“With regard to the military file, by which I mean the SDF and Asayish, the regime must recognize both of them. However, the regime is not yet prepared to take that step,” Abdi further explained.

The SDF Commander in Chief said in the interview  “a solution will not be reached without international parties putting constant pressure on the Assad regime. We believe that, in the event of an agreement between the East and West of the Euphrates under international sponsorship, all the issues in Syria will be resolved in due course.”

“Our relationships with the regime continue uninterrupted, and we want to resolve the differences between us. We have concluded that the Assad regime is not currently ready to reach solutions. The regime speaks from the position of the victor, and, from its point of view, it has the right to impose its decisions and return to the status quo of 2011,” Abdi added.

“The regime’s obstinacy vis-à-vis dialogue and reaching solutions stems from the ideology and policy of the ruling Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party in Syria, which refuses to accept others,” he noted.

In a response to a question regarding their relations with the opposition, Abdi said “Our relationships with the opposition are not good, especially after the occupation of Afrin, Tel Abyad, and Ras al-Ain, when the opposition dealt with Turkey and asked it to occupy those areas.”

He pointed out that they have relationships with some opposition parties abroad, such as the Moscow and Cairo platforms, and with prominent opposition figures. but “we do not have relationships with the Muslim Brotherhood group.”

Regional Relations 

Abdi stressed that they have no problems with the Kurdistan region, and that they have relations with the regional government, “we seek to build relationships with everyone, that is—with all parties and their leaders.”

“However, the frequency of disputes has increased lately, but the Kurds resolve their differences through dialogue. The shedding of Kurdish blood is forbidden,” Abdi stressed.

While regarding their relations with Iran Abdi said “Everything is linked to the outcome of the negotiations with the United States. From our perspective, we do not want our region to be part of either the regional conflict or the U.S.-Iran conflict.”

“Iran was supposed to play a positive role in the Syrian file by virtue of its influence on the Syrian regime,” the SDF leader added.

Abdi does not believe that in the event of the nuclear agreement with Iran, their role will be reduced, pointing out that “Our problems with Iran were resolved even before the arrival of the Americans. There are currently no problems with Iran, and if there are problems, they appear far from us, although they affect us.”

Abdi referred to the Gulf normalization with Assad’s regime “We are not against their relationships with Damascus; however, this relationship must not be at our expense or the expense of the Syrian people.”

“If their relationships with the regime reflect positively on the problem, we support them. However, when the regime sees power in these relationships and increases its aggression, then these relationships will turn into something negative,” Abdi noted.

Regarding their relation with Turkey Abdi expressed their readiness to dialogue, “In general, we want to resolve our differences with Turkey through dialogue. We, as the SDF, have repeatedly made it clear that we are not a party to the war between Turkey and the Kurdistan Workers Party”.

“We are ready for any meeting with them. The main problem with the government in Ankara is that the current rapprochement between the Justice and Development Party and the Nationalist Movement Party led by Bahçeli aims to wage war against the Kurds,” he said.

“They reject the presence of a Kurdish entity in Syria and have said they will not repeat the mistake of Iraq,” he explained.

Abdi believes “this aggressive approach will not last. Currently, they are getting weaker, and under domestic and international pressure, they will ultimately take the next step (dialogue)”. 

International ties

“We believe that Russia and the United States are the main players in the region. If the two of them reach an agreement, it is our belief that they will be able to achieve progress on the Syrian file,” Abdi said.

“We do not believe that the international meetings, whether in Geneva, Astana, or Sochi, will be capable of finding an exit because the sponsoring parties are not serious. Neither the regime nor the opposition close to Turkey want a solution because they are benefiting from the continuation of the conflict,” he added.

“We have strong military coordination and relationships, as well as common military points. Our political relationships are present and ongoing, and we want Russia to increase its role,” he added.

“Russians played the role of mediator between us and Damascus, and we believe Russia is the party that can directly influence the regime”.

“The situation in Daraa differs from here. Daraa was defeated militarily, and then reconciliation occurred. We were not defeated, nor did we accept reconciliation. We have political agreements, and Russia came because we asked them to on account of the Turkish state,” Abdi stressed.

“The situation here is more complicated, and there is more than one guarantor. Thus, it is difficult for Russia to do something similar, and it needs this region.”

“Russia no longer has anything to offer Turkey. Russia clarified its position and announced that it would not accept Turkey’s occupation of any Syrian new territory,” he said.

As for the relations with the US Abdi said, “we got to know Obama in Kobani, and our cooperation against ISIS continued until the end of his term. We continued with Trump; however, the Trump administration linked its commitments to the Autonomous Administration with the military elimination of ISIS, which caused those problems between us.”

“The Trump administration’s actions harmed this region and the gains that we and the U.S. military achieved together.”

“We find that there is a difference between the current Democratic administration and the former Republican one. We see more institutionalized decisions, and we feel they are more transparent with us, as they share and discuss with us issues specific to the region and to us. They have clear commitments, including remaining here and not withdrawing,” he added.

“We are not asking the U.S. army to stay here forever, nor to protect us,” he noted.

“Yes, we defeated ISIS, but the war against ISIS remains ongoing. To stand against ISIS, we need to reach a political solution. In short, we want to turn America’s stay here into grounds for reaching a political solution.”

To where is Syria going?

“I am optimistic. The Syrian regime will be forced to change its positions. The domestic, economic, and international situation will not allow it to return to 2011,” Abdi said.

Abdi noted, “the international powers have begun to sense that the Syrian problem must be resolved. The entities that want to choose war, such as Turkey and the Syrian regime, have no future. Those calling for dialogue will advance.”

“If that dialogue begins, we will be present in it, as we have been a concrete reality here for ten years. I believe that, in 2022, those steps will begin, and we will see progress in the political process.”