Kurdish issue in Syria ‘purely’ internal matter: Russian FM

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday that the Kurdish issue in Syria is “purely” an internal matter and the decision must be made by Syrians.

“Regarding the special status of the 'Kurdish region,' we believe that this sensitive issue is purely an internal matter of the Syrian Arab Republic. In our view, decisions related to such an important matter as the state system should be made by Syrians themselves, without external 'encouragement,' on the basis of national consensus,” Lavrov told Rudaw in a written response when asked whether Moscow would support an autonomous Kurdish region in Syria.

He also said that Russia supports “the strict implementation of the principles of unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of the Syrian Arab Republic” and that the post-war reconstruction of Syria is only possible through the UN Security Council Resolution 2254 with the participation of ethno-confessional groups, including Kurds.

In late November, Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) led a lightning offensive against the Syrian army, ending over five decades of Baathist rule in less than two weeks and bringing the country’s 13-year long civil war to an end.

Following the collapse of the regime, Assad and his family left for Moscow and were granted asylum by the Russian government.

Russia was a staunch supporter of Assad’s regime.

In a recent message to the Kurds, Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharra, better known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, sought to ease their fears, saying they are “part of the homeland” and “there will be no injustice” against them.