New Syria govt won't recognise PKK/YPG terror group's authority  — Fidan

Türkiye's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has said that Syria's transitional government will not have ties with the PKK/YPG terror group, adding Ankara's embassy in capital Damascus will resume work on Saturday.

Fidan told private broadcaster NTV on Friday that Syria now has a "sovereign national government" capable of reclaiming its territory, arguing that this government would not recognise the authority of either the PKK/YPG terror group or "any other power" on its soil.

The goal is to have a structure in Syria where terrorism does not exist, terror organisations like the PKK/YPG and Daesh do not receive support, minorities are not mistreated, and basic needs are met, Fidan added.

In its 40-year terror campaign against Türkiye, the PKK — listed as a terrorist organisation by Türkiye, the US, and the EU — has been responsible for the deaths of over 40,000 people, including women, children, infants, and the elderly.

The YPG is the PKK's offshoot in Syria, an area where, for years, the group has tried to establish a terrorist corridor along the Turkish border.

The Turkish top diplomat warned no one should be involved with weapons of mass destruction and that there should be no threats to regional countries.

He said Syria's unity, integrity, and peace should be ensured through an inclusive and encompassing government.

Fidan highlighted Türkiye's strategic goal of eliminating the PKK/YPG, warning: "Either they dissolve themselves or they will be dissolved."

Regarding the safe return of million of Syrian refugee, he said that the number of Syrians returning will increase as conditions in the neighbouring country improve.

Türkiye's strategy on YPG

Although Türkiye has the resources and capabilities to act, initially, Türkiye will wait for the new administration in Syria to take steps to neutralise the PKK/YPG threat, Fidan said.

On the other hand, especially as the YPG is being eliminated, care must be taken to ensure that the Kurds, who have lived in the ancient cities of the region for centuries, do not come to harm, he added.

"This is because the oppression that YPG has inflicted on Arabs and Kurds has always been evident. They are being held under pressure and control through coercion," he said.

Fidan said that, in the first phase, all non-Syrian international terror fighters within the ranks of the YPG/PKK must leave the country as soon as possible.

In the second phase, he stressed that the entire YPG command structure, including Syrian members, should also leave.

Furthermore, he said non-PKK cadres should disarm, peacefully integrate into the new administration's framework and return to normal civilian life within Syria.

Russia, Iran told not to intervene militarily

Fidan said his country had urged Russia and Iran not to intervene militarily to support Bashar al Assad as anti-regime fighters mounted their lightning advance on Damascus that ended with Assad's ouster and his flight to Moscow.

"The most important thing was to talk to the Russians and Iranians to ensure that they didn't enter the equation militarily. We had meetings with (them) and they understood," Fidan told NTV television.

He said if Moscow and Tehran, both key Assad allies since the start of the civil war in 2011, had come to Assad's aid, the opposition fighters could still have won but the outcome could have been far more violent.

"If Assad had received support, the opposition could have achieved victory with their determination, but it would have taken a long time and could have been bloody," he said.

Türkiye's aim was to "hold focused talks with the two important power players to ensure minimum loss of life," Fidan said.