Damascus deluded by Ankara’s withdrawal from Syria – AANES
RAQQA, Syria (North Press) – Syrian government is deluded by the Turkish withdrawal from Syrian territories though they come closer, an official in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) said on Thursday.
This came in a statement made by spokesperson of the AANES, Luqman Ahme, to the Executive Council’s website on recent attempts of rapprochement between the Syria and Turkey and the current meetings between the two parties.
He added the Turkish forces withdrawal from Syria is related to an intra-Syrian agreement, noting Turkey will not withdraw from areas it occupies, “Damascus is deluded by this.”
A Turkish official, in a meeting of the opposition factions in northwest Syria, said Turkey has no intention of any “near-term” withdrawal from Syria though this is a condition set by Damascus for any future rapprochement, according to Asharq Al-Awsat.
“A special meeting was held in northwestern Syria in recent days. It included several opposition soldiers and a Turkish military official,” it quoted a source as saying.
“Regime demands for the removal of Turkish forces from Syrian territories are unrealistic,” a Turkish media outlet quoted Turkish Foreign Minister Melvut Cavusoglu as saying on Friday.
Ahme added, “Turkey never removes its forces from areas it occupies, Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Libya and large swathes in Africa, all signify this.”
On September 17, co-chair of the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), Riyad Dirar said Turkey’s calls for normalization with the Syrian government aims to take control over other areas in the Syrian north,
In his speech made to North Press, Dirar did not rule out that the Turkish-Syrian rapprochement would be invested against the AANES, adding, “The region may face more pressure.”
Ahme said the withdrawal of Turkish forces from Syria “is related to intra-Syrian agreement in an overall dialogue to agree on a project that serves all communities and guarantees their rights.”
He added [people in] northern Syria reject such a rapprochement, ruling out that [people in] areas under Syrian government accept such a reconciliation for “Turkey caused millions of Syrian to suffer.”
On August 20, Hassan Kocher, deputy co-chair of the Executive Council of the AANES, said, “The recent agreement between Turkey and Syrian regime will deepen the Syrian crisis … and it will lead to divide Syria.”
“The rapprochement intends to strike the AANES,” Kocher added.