Next Kurdish autonomy: This time in Syria?
On June 18, a U.S.-brokered agreement was reached between Syria's two largest Kurdish parties. The consensus between the Democratic Union Party (PYD) and the Kurdish National Council (ENKS) may signal a Kurdish autonomy in Syria, aking to the one in northern Iraq. The process reminds of a similar agreement reached in 1992 in northern Iraq between the Barzani family's Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Talabani clan`s Kurdistan Patriotic Union (PUK).
While the process in Syria has been discussed for a long time, France and Russia are closely involved in the talks as well. While the PYD is considered by Turkey a terrorist organization, the ENKS has warm relations with Ankara. Therefore, a possible reaction of the Turkish authorities is yet to be known. In any case, a Kurdish autonomy in Syria is one of the short-term goals of the United States, which seems quite close to this goal.
