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After sectarian clashes in Aleppo, US, SDF, and Syrian government officials meet in Damascus
Syrian President Ahmed al Sharaa met with US Envoy Tom Barrack and the head of US Central Command, Admiral Brad Cooper, in Damascus on October 7. The meeting came in the wake of clashes between factions backed by the Syrian transitional government and Kurdish fighters in two neighborhoods in Aleppo. The head of the Syrian Democratic Forces, Mazlum Abdi, also met with Syria’s defense minister and agreed to a ceasefire between the SDF and government forces. Barrack, Cooper, and Abdi separately met in eastern Syria on October 6 to discuss integration between Syria’s east and Damascus, plus continued operations against…
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Syrian integration in focus as Syrian President Sharaa speaks at UN
Syrian transitional President Ahmed al Sharaa spoke at the United Nations General Assembly on September 24, urging support for rebuilding Syria and emphasizing the need for peace and stability in the country. Separately, a spokesperson for the largely Kurdish-run Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) said there was increasing pressure on Damascus and AANES authorities in eastern Syria to come to an agreement, despite recent clashes.
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Tensions grow between Damascus and eastern Syria amid continuing efforts to integrate factions
Conflicts between the Syrian transitional government in Damascus and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) pose challenges for the transitional government as it seeks to integrate factions. Syrian state media claimed on September 2 that the government’s internal security force had intercepted an arms shipment destined for the SDF, plus reported other recent clashes between security forces and the SDF, which the SDF has denied. Despite these tensions, negotiations between authorities in eastern Syria and Damascus continue amid US support.
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Delegation from eastern Syria meets with government in Damascus
The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) sent a delegation to Damascus for the first round of talks aimed at the full integration of military and civilian institutions of the autonomous eastern Syria region into the state’s new institutions. The development comes as US forces are slowly withdrawing from the country.
