Is Kurdish-Proposed Demilitarized Zone in Northern Syria Possible?
Fighters from the SDF. (File)
Mazloum Abdi, the leader of the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), has proposed the creation of a “demilitarized zone” in Kobani, a town on the Syrian-Turkish border, under US supervision. But is this plan viable?“The Turks have their own territorial ambitions in Syria, and so I don’t expect that they would welcome or approve such a plan,” political and security analyst Ali Rizk told Sputnik. Abdi’s proposal comes amid the Biden administration’s efforts to maintain a ceasefire brokered last week between the SDF and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army in northern Syria. US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said a truce in the northern Syrian town of Manbij was extended on Tuesday until the end of the week. The fate of Kobani, a Kurdish-majority city, hangs in the balance as the SDF braces for a possible Turkish offensive. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan signaled on December 13 that Ankara’s strategic goal was to eliminate Kurdish militias. “They still consider the SDF to be a terrorist organization affiliated with the [Kurdistan] Workers’ Party,” explained Rizk. The viability of the demilitarized zone largely depends on the incoming US administration. If Donald Trump decides to keep US troops on the ground in Syria, Turkiye might be forced to accept the Kurdish plan, Rizk assumes. But it is equally possible that Trump would opt for withdrawal. During his first tenure, the pull-out was delayed to maintain control over Syrian oil in Kurdish-held regions, where at least nine US military bases have been deployed since 2015.
AnalysisSyrian Kurds: Between a Rock and a Hard Place17 December, 19:04 GMT
