Syrian Foreign Minister Rules Out Country's Federalization

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem ruled out on Monday the country's federalization, arguing that it would be a breach of the existing constitution.

DAMASCUS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th October, 2018) Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem ruled out on Monday the country's federalization, arguing that it would be a breach of the existing constitution.

The statement was made at a press conference following Muallem's talks with Iraqi counterpart Ibrahim Jaafari.

"Have you read the Syrian constitution? Is there anything about federalization? This proposal runs counter to the constitution, and we, as a state, respect the constitution of the Syrian Arab Republic and cannot violate it," Muallem told reporters, when asked about possible federalization in the light of push for self-determination by the Kurds living in the east of the Euphrates.

Muallem noted that the Kurds must decide whether to continue relying on the outside support or determine their future on their own.

"The Kurds must finally decide whether they will continue to count on US support or whether they have learned the lessons of the past decades when they allied with the major powers and then the latter suddenly abandoned them.

They need to decide for themselves what their future will be," the minister noted.

If the Kurds continue to rely on the US support, any talks with them will be a "waste of time," he stressed, adding that the negotiations with the Kurds will only succeed if they express wish to return under control of Damascus.

The Syrian Kurds announced the creation of the Federal region of Rojava in northeastern Syria in 2016, with Damascus saying the move had no legal power. Later that same year, the region was renamed to the Democratic Federation of Northern Syria.

Regions in northeast Syria still remain under control of the Kurdish-dominated and US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). In July and August, media reported about Damascus-SDF talks. Earlier in October, an SDF delegation reportedly paid another visit to Damascus.

In late September, Muallem told the RT broadcaster that the Damascus-SDF negotiations had been fruitful at their start but had been disrupted by the interference of the United States supplying the Kurds with arms.