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US envoy meets SDF leader to advance Syria's unification

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Al Mayadeen
20 Jul 2025 00:30

US Special Envoy Thomas Barrack meets with SDF Commander Mazloum Abdi to discuss urgent steps for stability in Syria and practical measures toward national integration.

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Mazloum Abdi, leader of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), left, signs a memorandum of understanding with Syrian transitional President, Ahmad al-Sharaa, right, in the Syrian presidential palace, Damascus, Syria, on March 10, 2025. (SANA)

United States Special Envoy to Syria, Ambassador Thomas Barrack, met on Saturday with Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) General Commander Mazloum Abdi to discuss the ongoing situation in Syria and the urgent need for restoring calm and stability across the country.

According to a statement released by the US Embassy, the two officials explored practical steps toward achieving integration into a unified Syrian state and agreed that "the time for unity is now."

The meeting emphasized the necessity of national cohesion in building a peaceful, inclusive, and prosperous Syria.

Barrack also expressed gratitude to General Abdi for his leadership and reaffirmed Washington’s appreciation for the SDF's continued partnership in fighting ISIS in northeastern Syria.

Efforts toward integration

The meeting follows a US-brokered agreement reached in March between Syria’s transitional government and the SDF, which outlined a roadmap for integrating the Kurdish-led force into the state’s military and political institutions.

At the time, Syria's transitional presidency announced that executive committees had been formed to implement the agreement before the end of the year. A spokesperson for the SDF described the agreement as "preliminary," while underlining that the United States played a pivotal role in its mediation.

The developments come amid broader international and regional efforts to stabilize Syria, especially after the unrest witnessed in southern Syria, where government-backed forces, tribal forces, and Druze militants clashed in the past week.