Syrian Kurds agree to disagree
Despite agreeing to speak with a single Kurdish voice at Geneva II, Syria's Kurds are far from united on how to administer the Kurdish areas in the future.
WASHINGTON — Leaders of the Syrian Kurdish parties agreed Dec. 24 to participate in the Geneva II peace conference on Jan. 22 with a single Kurdish voice as either part of the Syrian opposition bloc or as an independent Kurdish delegation. But differences remain over how to administer the Kurdish areas in the future, which could again lead to tensions among them.
The Democratic Union Party (PYD), the Syrian branch of Turkey’s Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and the Kurdish National Council (KNC), a coalition of 16 Kurdish parties backed by Massoud Barzani, the president of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), concluded the Erbil agreement in 2012 to administer Syria’s Kurdish areas together through the Supreme Kurdish Council (SKC).
