Negotiations over the future of Syria continue to face hurdles on multiple fronts. A member of the Negotiation Committee of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) told North Press in Syria on Saturday that “the last two meetings, which were supposed to be held in Paris, were canceled by the Syrian transitional government.”
Meanwhile, United States Syria envoy (and US ambassador to Turkey) Thomas Barrack arrived in Israel on Sunday and met Israel’s prime minister and other officials. Among the topics that Barrack is likely focusing on is the issue of Syria.
For instance, Al-Arabiya reported that Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer “held talks with Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani in Paris on Tuesday on security arrangements in southern Syria, two Syrian sources familiar with the meeting said.”
Paris is also the site of the talks regarding Syrian unity between the AANES and Damascus. The AANES is the civilian side of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. The SDF is Kurdish-led and was a main partner force of the US in the defeat of ISIS.
SDF leader Mazloum Abdi met with Syria’s transitional president Ahmed al-Sharaa in March. They agreed to a roadmap toward unity that was supposed to take place throughout the year and see eastern Syria integrate into a Damascus-led Syria.
As such, the SDF, with some 80,000 or more trained fighters, was supposed to integrate into the new Syrian security forces.
However, since the high hopes in March, both Damascus and the AANES have held back from fulfilling the concept of integration or unity. While the US and others have backed unity, there are concerns that the government in Damascus cannot control its own security forces.
A massacre of Alawites in Latakia in March and attacks on Druze in July illustrate the challenge. Israel has been backing the Druze, essentially turning Sweida, south of Damascus, into an autonomous region. The SDF see the attacks on the Druze as foreshadowing attacks on the Kurds in the future.
In early August, France 24 noted that “a Syrian government official said Saturday that authorities would not participate in planned talks in Paris on integrating the Kurdish semi-autonomous administration into the Syrian state and demanded future negotiations be held in Damascus.”
The report said that “The move came a day after the Kurdish administration, which controls swathes of the north and northeast, held a conference involving several Syrian minority communities, the first such event since Islamists overthrew longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December.”
Now North Press, which is close to the AANES, noted that “Sanharib Barsoum, co-chair of the Syriac Union Party and a member of the negotiating committee in northeastern Syria with the Syrian transitional government, explained that this cancellation ‘gave the guarantor parties the impression that the obstacles came from Damascus, contrary to what had been promoted that it was the Autonomous Administration that was stalling or obstructing progress.’”
Barsoum added that “the timeframe set – by the end of the year – has now become very tight, but what matters is that we achieve a number of agreements that can build confidence and pave the way toward broader accords.”
The practical solutions that are needed are not coming to fruition as fast as hoped. However, members of the AANES and SDF remain open to talks.
A report on social media from eastern Syria noted that “talks between Damascus and the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria are still ongoing. Despite challenges, dialogue remains the only path to resolve pending issues and ensure stability. The AANES continues working on solutions that protect the interests of the NES [Northeast Syria] population.”
However, the AANES remains adamant that they want a decentralized system in Syria, meaning they don’t want a totalitarian Damascus. Federal structures or other systems that enable some autonomy for eastern Syria are important going forward.
Recognition that Sweida may need some autonomy
This comes as there is also recognition that Sweida, the Druze heartland in southern Syria, may also need some form of autonomy. Damascus will not want to agree to this as it will see such autonomy as not enabling the unity it wants to see. This creates a potential clash on several fronts. Turkey likely will not want eastern Syria to retain much autonomy either.
An August 22 report by North Press noted that “Fawza Yusuf, co-chair of the AANES negotiation committee, emphasized on Friday that decentralization and the integration of the SDF into the Syrian army are 'fundamental and non-negotiable” issues.
She stressed the continuation of dialogue with the Syrian government, despite existing disagreements.” Yusuf added that “early meetings concentrated on simpler files to build trust, such as the continuation of the al-Sheikh Maqsoud and al-Ashrafieh agreements, as well as the formation of committees for exams and for security, military, and economic matters.
She noted that a planned meeting between the Afrin committee and its government counterpart after Eid al-Fitr had not yet taken place, while education exams were postponed for 15 days and later conducted successfully,” North Press noted.
Damascus is dealing with other issues at the moment. It is still trying to crack down on ISIS threats and work to fund people who have returned from displaced persons camps. Part of Syria lies in ruins. The battles in Sweida with the Druze led to an additional 100,000 people being displaced, according to various reports. It has also led to destruction that Syria cannot afford.
Damascus wants to focus on issues closer to home, such as Israel and Sweida. As such, integrating eastern Syria may not be top of the list for Damascus at the moment.