The U.S. Representative to Northeast Syria Nicolas Granger discussed several political issues with officials of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) on Thursday.
This came during a visit to the AANES Department of Foreign Relations in the city of Qamishli, northeast Syria. Granger met with Badran Chia Kurd, the co-chair of the department, and his deputies, according to the department’s website.
Both parties discussed the recent developments, most notably the potential Syrian-Turkish normalization under Russian mediation.
Both parties stressed that the rapprochement is not in the interests of Syrians after all that Turkey has done from wars, occupation and terrorism.
The meeting also discussed the Turkish threats of launching another incursion in northern Syria, which could lead to a new humanitarian catastrophe that will be marked by killing and displacing civilians, and this goes against the will of the US-led Global Coalition of maintaining peace and security in north and northeast Syria, the department said.
The department also said that the threats come at a time when the region is witnessing an uptick in the activity of the Islamic State (ISIS).
Turkey’s Policy in Syria Depends on Interests – AANES Official
The two sides also discussed the mechanism of entering humanitarian aid into Syria and “the Syrian regime’s politicization of the aid provided to the Syrian people by eliminating specific parts of Syria’s Geography.”
Both sides noted that the continued closure of the al-Yar’ubiyah (Tel Kocher) Border Crossing, which connects northeast Syria with Iraq, exacerbates the humanitarian and economic conditions, adding that this is unfair to the millions of people who are living in north and east Syria.
The U.S. discourages normalization between Turkey and Syria
At a January 6th press briefing, White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said his government rejected the recent rapprochement between Erdogan and Assad. “We obviously don’t support normalization with Assad,” he declared.
After Turkish, Syrian, and Russian defence ministers and intelligence officials held a tripartite meeting in Moscow in late 2022, the three countries foreign ministers are set to meet later this month, according to Turkish officials.
This would mark the highest-level meeting between Syria and Turkey since the outbreak of the Syrian civil war.
According to unconfirmed reports by a Turkish opposition newspaper, a meeting between Erdogan and Assad is scheduled to take place before the Turkish national elections in May.
Robert Ford
Recently, figures within the U.S. political establishment have criticized Washin ton’s role in Syria.
Robert Ford, a former U.S. ambassador to Syria, called the normalization process between Ankara and Damascus, as well as the U.S.’ attempt at a political solution, an “illusion” in a recent op-ed piece.
Similarly, Mona Yacoubian, a senior advisor with the federal ‘U.S. Institute of Peace,’ labelled recent Turkish actions in Syria “a threat to vital US interests” in the region and criticized Washington’s inaction in her own commentary piece.
“We’ll see where these talks go and what actually comes out of this,” Kirby said at the January 6 press conference. “I don’t want to get ahead of where they are.”
Asked whether the Biden administration approved of the Russian-mediated talks and whether Kurds would ‘pay the price’ for this process, Kirby answered “No.”
This article was edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
