Kurdish Forces' Withdrawal From Syria's North Almost Completed - Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov

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Kurdish Forces' Withdrawal From Syria's North Almost Completed -  Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov

The Kurdish forces' withdrawal from Syria's north has been almost completed, and only some minor presence is still possible, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 20th November, 2019) The Kurdish forces' withdrawal from Syria's north has been almost completed, and only some minor presence is still possible, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday.

"Withdrawal of armed units of Kurdish formations took place. If there are any small areas where this has not been finished, it is natural. And the fact that everything goes strictly within the framework of the memorandum, which was approved by [Russian President Vladimir] Putin and [Turkish President Recep Tayyip] Erdogan, is confirmed by the regular continued joint patrols of the Russian military police and their Turkish colleagues ... as agreed in Sochi on October 22," Lavrov said at a press conference after talks with Bahrain's Foreign Minister Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa.

The Russian foreign minister stressed that the resumption of Turkey's offensive against the Kurdish militia was out of question, confirming the Russian Defense Ministry's statement that Russia complies fully with its obligations under the memorandum.

"Yesterday, after the Ministry of Defense made this statement in response to allegations from Ankara about non-compliance with the Sochi agreements, there was contact between representatives of the Turkish government and our ambassador.

No one in Ankara questions the work that Russia is doing, and neither [Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut] Cavusoglu, nor [Erdogan's spokesman Ibrahim] Kalin were talking about resumption of Operation Peace Spring," Lavrov added, stressing that the pullout of the Kurdish forces form Syria's border with Turkey would be completed.

The Defense Ministry reaffirmed Russia's compliance with the deal soon after Cavusoglu said Turkey could resume its offensive if the United States and Russia failed to ensure the withdrawal of the Kurdish militia.

The minister also accused the US of trying to hinder the dialogue between Kurds and Damascus, emphasizing that the crisis could only be resolved through direct negotiations.

'I am convinced that the rights of the Kurds ... can be ensured exclusively through honest, open dialogue within the framework of the political process, dialogue with the central Syrian authorities," Lavrov said.

The Russian foreign minister voiced his concerns over the fact that some representatives of the Syrian Democratic Forces placed their stakes on the belief that the US would ensure their autonomy.