DAMASCUS: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa announced Sunday (Jan 18) an agreement with the chief of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, Mazloum Abdi, that includes a ceasefire after government forces advanced in Kurdish-held areas of the north and east.
The United States, which for years has supported Syrian Kurdish fighters but is now also a key ally of Damascus, welcomed the deal, with envoy Tom Barrack calling it “a pivotal inflection point” and commending both sides’ “constructive efforts”.
After meeting Barrack in Damascus, Sharaa told reporters: “I recommend a complete ceasefire”. He said a meeting with Abdi was postponed until Monday due to poor weather, but that “in order to calm the situation, we decided to sign the agreement”.
Details are to be finalised on Monday, he said, adding that the deal was based on “the spirit” of an agreement signed in March.
He urged Arab tribes who make up the majority of the population in Kurdish-held Raqa and Deir Ezzor provinces in Syria’s north and east, “to maintain calm… in order to pave the way for the gradual implementation of the agreement’s provisions until we reach complete calm in Syria”.
He expressed hope that the deal would be “a good start” for development and reconstruction and “a chance for security and stability” and “that Syria ends its current state of division and moves towards a state of unity and progress”.