Safe Zone In Northern Syria Depends On Turkish-American Consensus - Syrian Opposition

Establishing a safe zone in northern Syria depends on the Turkish-American consensus, the spokesman for the Syrian Negotiations Commission (SNC) opposition umbrella body, Yahya Aridi, told Sputnik

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 16th September, 2019) Establishing a safe zone in northern Syria depends on the Turkish-American consensus, the spokesman for the Syrian Negotiations Commission (SNC) opposition umbrella body, Yahya Aridi, told Sputnik.

Turkey and the United States have been taking steps to set up a safe zone in Kurdish militia-controlled northeastern Syria close to the border with Turkey, such as sending joint patrols and using US influence on the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to withdraw fighters and weapons from the area.

"Things are not quite clear, because it depends on the American-Turkish consensus. If this US-Turkish consensus happens, they won't need the United Nations," Aridi told Sputnik, answering a question on whether the UN has responded to the safe zone's creation in northern Syria.

He also stressed the need for the Turkish-American consensus, which would allow people to safely return to Syria.

The United States reached an agreement with Turkey to create the safe zone in August, following months of tensions between the two NATO allies over the presence of Kurdish militants in northern Syria.

While the United States has backed the SDF in the fight against Islamic State (terrorist group banned in Russia), Turkey views the Kurdish forces as a threat to national security and has repeatedly threatened to launch an incursion into northern Syria to force them out of the territory.

The Syrian government has opposed the US-Turkish agreement, labeling it as a violation of both Syria's sovereignty and territorial integrity as well as a violation of international law.