Turkey Presses YPG to Fulfill Synergy Agreement with Syrian Government

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan emphasized Turkey's expectation that the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia will fulfill its agreement with the Syrian government by integrating into the country's armed forces. This announcement comes amidst Turkey's designation of the YPG as linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), a group engaged in a long-standing conflict with Ankara.

Speaking at a NATO foreign ministers' meeting in Antalya, Fidan remarked, "We see that there has been no step taken by the YPG so far. We expect these steps to be put into practice." He further stressed that a unified Syrian government and armed forces are crucial for regional stability.

The YPG, leading the U.S.-supported Syrian Democratic Forces, controls Syria's oil-abundant northeast. An agreement signed in March with Damascus calls for these areas, and strategic resources, to reintegrate into Syrian state operations by year's end, but the framework for military integration remains uncertain.

(With inputs from agencies.)