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Syrian Kurds welcome agreement on Geneva II

An agreement between the Kurdistan Workers Party and Iraqi Kurdistan President Massoud Barzani is an attempt to form a unified front heading into Geneva II.
Iraqi Kurdish President Massoud Barzani (C) visits Syrian refugees at the Quru Gusik refugee camp in Arbil, about 350 km (220 miles) north of Baghdad, August 19, 2013. An estimated 29,000 Syrian refugees have entered northern Iraq since Thursday in one of the largest crossings in Syria's two-year-old conflict and the influx is continuing, the United Nations said on Monday. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: SOCIETY IMMIGRATION) - RTX12R1S

WASHINGTON — According to a statement by the rebels of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), Kurdish President Massoud Barzani’s Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the PKK have reached an agreement to unite Syria's Kurds for the upcoming Geneva II conference on Jan. 22 and will revive an earlier agreement by the Kurdish parties of Syria, after months of conflict. On Dec. 17, the Syrian Kurdish parties will have a bilateral meeting.


The agreement comes after the Kurdish parties realized disunity would harm their achievements in Syria and therefore started to negotiate. However, there is no official agreement yet between the Kurdish parties from Syria, and the KDP and PKK have different policies toward Syria and Turkey. The PKK and Turkey have been in conflict for years, while Barzani is trying to build relations with Turkey.

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