WEST KURDISTAN (SYRIA) – Aldar Xelil (PYD) : A Federal System Is Now Inevitable For Syria

(ROJAVA REPORT –  KÖYLÜOĞLU – QAMIŞLO) Aldar Xelil, a member of the Executive Council of the Western Kurdistan Democratic Social Movement (TEV-DEM), has spoken to ANF about the diplomatic and political realities surrounding Geneva 2, where a second round of talks began today. Xexil emphasized that hegemonic powers could no longer control the country, and stated that “a federal system is now inevitable for Syria.”

Xexil began by stressing the need for real opposition groups participating in the talks, saying “if during the second round of talks Syria’s principal democratic forces participate then it could change the agenda of the conference. If the program changes they will lose the initiative. If they do not accept the democratic forces and Syria’s real opposition at the conference then there will be no real results. As of now the meetings are continuing along this trajectory. The current meetings between the National Coordinating Committee for Democratic Change and the PYD are meaningful in this respect.”            

Some Armed Groups Do Not Recognize The Opposition

Xexil reasserted that the parties currently taking part in the conference would be unable to solve the crisis in Syria, saying “the goal of the second round of talks at Geneva is to form a temporary government. However the existing parties do not have the forces to form such a government. Moreover some armed groups do not even recognize the political wing of the opposition. For this reason even if the opposition makes an agreement with the regime it might not stop the fighting. If this temporary government is formed without consulting the Kurds then we will not recognize it.”

The Meetings Are Not Directed At Stopping The War, But Controlling It

Xelil expressed the desire of he and his colleagues that the fighting stop and that further tragedy be avoided, saying “up until now the meetings taking place have not pursued a real solution to the civil war in Syria. These policies cannot produce a real solution. A complicated civil war has broken out in Syria. Regional countries and international powers have lost control of the fighting. The meetings now taking place in Geneva are working to bringing the fighting back under control. That is to say the efforts are not directed toward a solution but to bringing the war under control.”

Xelil pointed to the fact that with the exception of opening up a humanitarian aid corridor to Homs the first round of talks achieved nothing, saying “however in times of war small agreements such as these occur. However Geneva 2 did not produce any serious results. We consider this meeting to be a fiasco. Not one word was spoken by the Kurds at the meeting. The Kurds who participated in the meeting within the Syrian opposition were completely ineffective.

Xelil also pointed to the weakness of America and Russia at the negotiating table, and to how they are attempting to regain their influence. Xelil also said that the meetings produced no real gains for Western-supported Syrian National Coalition, saying “the Syrian regime became the strongest party sitting at the negotiating table. Now in order to move beyond this situation a new process of diplomatic meetings has been initiated. The Syrian opposition has been meeting for the past two days. The Syrian National Coalition is meeting with the Heyet el-Tensiq on participating in the meeting together. But in order for this to happen the Syrian National Coalition needs to change the policies that it has adopted until today. But apparently these meetings have yet to produce any results. If the first round of talks provided for a certain amount of progress, meetings with the democratic opposition would have unnecessary. Instead of finding a solution, the meetings are turning into an effort to strengthen certain forces that will not be accepted by anyone.”

Xelil went on to speak of the role of regional powers in the conflict, saying “up until now Iraq and Syria have become the battlefield for radical groups. Many of these people are coming from Europe in order to fight for these groups. Some powers want the fighting in Syria to continue throughout the region. If a solution emerges that does not suit their interests then they will attempt to block it. For this reason they did not want us to participate in Geneva. For them it is not important who defends human rights and democracy and who are dictators.”

Erdoğan Was To Be The Sultan Of The Middle East

Xelil criticized Turkish policy in Syria in particular and claimed that it policy has failed completely, saying “Turkey was counting on forces close to it taking control in Western Kurdistan. In this way Erdoğan would become the Sultan of the Middle East. The parties wrapping themselves in Islam have not been successful in Syria. They have lost the initiative. This has also led to contradictions between the USA and Turkey on the topic of Syria. Leader Apo’s letters strengthened the process. But the most important factor was that the Kurdish movement grew in strength and numbers. Turkey does not have the same influence in the region that it once had.”

Xelil also spoke on Iran, the obstruction of its participation Geneva 2, and the need for Iran to be involved in any solution. He once again reiterated the need for Syria’s true opposition to be allowed a place in the talks, saying “in that case we will use all of our strength to produce a solution.”

A Federal System Is Now Inevitable

Xelil again emphasized that before all else the fighting needed to stop, and in response to the question “what kind of Syria” will emerge after the war, Xelil responded: “We want the fighting to stop immediately and all prisoners to be released. Along with the calming of these extraordinary situation all foreign fighters should return to their homes. Then comes the political problems. A temporary government and a constitutional assembly could be formed. A temporary social contract could also be formed. It would be important that there is a recognition of the constitutional rights of the Kurds. How Syria will be governed more generally is a subject of debate. Now it is impossible for a centralized Syria to be governed. A federal system that will accomodate the identities of all peoples and religious groups is now inevitable.”