ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Sunday that the territorial integrity of Syria is “non-negotiable” and that the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) “has no place" in the country, during a joint press conference with Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, better known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, in Damascus.
“This is not a time to wait and see; we must act. Territorial integrity is non-negotiable. Once again, we affirm that there is no place for PKK/YPG [People’s Protection Units] in Syria,” Fidan said.
“The PKK/YPG must dissolve itself immediately,” he added.
Turkey considers the YPG, the backbone of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), as the Syrian front for the PKK - designated as a terrorist group by Ankara.
Fidan said that the PKK is “occupying Syria” and is “stealing Syria’s resources and has established a terror haven.”
The SDF is the US-led global coalition’s main ally on the ground to combat the Islamic State (ISIS) in Syria.
For his part, Sharaa said that the all the weapons in the country must come under state control, including those in the SDF-held areas.
“We will absolutely not allow there to be weapons in the country outside state control, whether from the revolutionary factions or the factions present in the SDF area,” he said.
He also said that the all the factions in Syria “will begin to announce their dissolution and enter” the army.
Regarding US’s support for the SDF, Fidan said that supporting Turkey over the SDF will be in the interest of the next administration of President-elect Donald Trump.
“When we look at it from America's interests, as a mathematical calculation, whether Turkey or a terrorist organization like the PKK is more important, Mr Trump sees the mathematics immediately,” he said.
Jake Sullivan, US’s outgoing National Security Advisor said on Saturday during a panel in New York “that one of the “major issues” Washington is “how to ensure that we are standing up for and standing with our best and closest partners in that ISIS [Islamic State] fight, that is Syrian Democratic Forces - Kurdish-led forces but also with a lot of Arabs fighting alongside them.”
“We need to stand with the Kurds and President Biden intends to do that,” Sullivan noted.
SDF chief Mazloum Abdi has warned during a series of interviews with international media that the ISIS threat has recently increased following the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime and amid escalating tensions between the SDF and Turkey-backed militia groups in northern Syria.
An inclusive Syria
The Turkish foreign minister said that “an inclusive administration” must be established in Syria, that represents all the components of the country, without excluding any group.
“An inclusive administration must be established in Syria under the leadership and ownership of Syrians, where no religious or ethnic group is excluded,” Fidan said.
For his part, Sharaa said that his administration will protect the minorities, emphasizing the importance of co-existence in the country.
“We are working on protecting sects and minorities from any attacks that occur between them,” Sharaa said, adding that they will also work to protect the country from “external” actors trying to seize the vulnerable situation to “cause sectarian conflict.”
“Syria is a country for all, and we can coexist together,” he added.
Sanctions lifted on Syria
Fidan said that the new Syria needs a chance to rebuild and called on the international community to lift sanctions on Damascus.
“The sanctions imposed on the previous regime need to be lifted as soon as possible,” Fidan said, adding that “the international community needs to mobilize to help Syria get back on its feet and for the displaced people to return.”