The Syrian government takes advantage of Turkey’s rapprochement attempts to blackmail the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), an official at the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC) told North Press on Thursday.
Ali Rahmon, a member of the SDC’s Presidency, told North Press, “The Damascus government, backed by Russia, is blackmailing the Syrian Democratic Forces [SDF] into handing over some territories to it or allowing Turkey to invade these areas.”
Recently, media reports abounded about Ankara’s attempts to move towards a rapprochement with Damascus and President Erdogan’s requests for a meeting with his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad.
Damascus rejects the idea of a meeting before the Turkish elections and demands Turkey withdraw from Syrian territory, arguing that it is not obliged to provide Erdogan with a “free win.”
He noted that Turkey’s strategy in Syria is to usurp the country piece by piece. “It started with Jarabulus, then Afrin and then Tel Abyad and Ras al-Ain, and now it has been threatening to invade other areas in northern Syria for nearly six months.”
On Wednesday, Hassan Muhammad Ali, a member of the SDC’s executive committee, said that the SDC and the SDF have turned into key players in the Syrian political sphere and that they cannot be overlooked when it comes to resolving the Syrian crisis.
China Calls On Turkey To Stop Attacks On Syria
Meanwhile, China has expressed its refusal of the Turkish attacks on northeastern Syria.
Geng Shuang, China’s deputy permanent representative to the UN, said, in remarks at a UNSC on Wednesday, “Syria is a sovereign state,” and any military action on it is “a violation of its sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
Shuang called on Turkey to stop attacks on northern Syria and to find a political solution.
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.
