The presence of the YPG in Aleppo’s city center has come to an end. Kurds living in the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyeh neighborhoods have also felt relief because cadres directed from Qandil, who later arrived there, had brought in heavy weapons, dug tunnels, created an atmosphere of pressure and carried out guided and timed attacks to block an agreement between the YPG and the new Damascus administration.
In support of Syria's unity and territorial integrity, Türkiye has extended every effort. While launching the “terror-free Türkiye” process at home, it also put forward the goal of a terror-free region. During this process, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Bahçeli repeatedly made calls, stating: “It is an indispensable priority for us that not only Kurds in Türkiye, but also Kurds in Syria and Iraq, live in peace, security and stability.”
People's Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) members who have met with Erdoğan and Bahçeli over the past year know well how sensitive they are on this issue. In bilateral meetings, the DEM Party was expected to do its part on this matter. In good faith, Türkiye’s efforts to ensure that Turks, Kurds and Arabs live together in peace in the region were explained to the party’s officials.
After the meetings, in their public statements, they praised the state's efforts and approaches, as well as those of the ruling alliance, the People’s Alliance, and its leaders. With their latest statements, the leaders of the People’s Alliance have shown that they stand on the same ground regarding the future of Syria and the region.
After the operations against the YPG, it is truly unfortunate that DEM Party figures, precisely at a time when negotiations are ongoing, repeat the PKK’s organizational language, such as “sabotaging the solution,” “weakening efforts toward solution and integration,” “anti-solution forces,” and “deepening the war.” At the very least, in order not to squander the positive atmosphere created in the terror-free Türkiye process, one would expect them not to be trapped in the jargon imposed on them by anti-solution cliques within the PKK.
During the period of trench and barricade terrorism, the people of the region held the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), the predecessor of the DEM Party, and those who led it responsible for what the PKK terrorist organization did. In this sense, the Kurdish public’s perspective was correct. They also concretized this view by seriously punishing the HDP in the first elections.
In Syria, there is still an opportunity for the YPG. After the Aleppo intervention, negotiations will be given another chance in order to comply with the March 10 Agreement. It is known that there are disagreements between the different structures of Qandil and the YPG. Qandil-linked cadres within the YPG are unwilling to reach an agreement with Syria’s new administration.
The Syrian administration is proceeding with a two-track strategy. On one track, it is managing the process diplomatically with regional and international actors; on the other, it is conducting military operations at a sustainable pace. The conclusion we must draw from this is the following: the March 10 Agreement will be implemented one way or another.
For the YPG, there is still an opportunity for negotiation. If it uses this opportunity and acts within the framework of the agreement, everyone in Syria will benefit. If not, the one that will certainly lose will be the YPG. It is now time for the YPG to abandon maximalist and unsustainable demands and return to reasonable ground. No one will give the YPG more time, neither the Arabs in northeastern Syria, nor the Syrian administration, nor Türkiye.
For a century in the Middle East, none of those who thought they would profit by following in the wake of colonial and international powers have ended up well. Everyone who allows themselves to be used, from state to organization, from administrator to journalist and opinion leader, has a shelf life. The “use and discard” method has always worked. Everyone living in this geography should know this. Those who think they will reach salvation by acting as errand boys for the U.S., Israel and Western powers will once again see that they are mistaken.
