William Rubak, the U.S. adviser of foreign affairs to the Coalition forces to fight against Islamic State (ISIS), Syrian Kurdistan (Rojava), June 12, 2019. Photo: ANHA
QAMISHLO, Syrian Kurdistan,— A US delegation visited Syria’s Kurdish areas on Wednesday discussed the country’s support for the people in Syrian Kurdistan (Rojava), the northern and eastern Syria, Hawar News Agency ANHA reported.
The delegation headed by US adviser of foreign affairs to the Coalition forces to fight against Islamic State (ISIS) William Rubak arrived in Rojava on Wednesday.
ANHA reported that the delegation was received by the co-chairs of Executive Council of Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria Abdul Hamid al-Muhbash and Berivan Khalid.
Following their meeting in Ain Issa, Rubak said the aim of the delegation’s visit was to provide help and support to the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the autonomous administration (AA) in terms of security, according ANHA.
“We will strengthen our relations with Autonomous Administration and SDF in the second phase of the campaign against the sleeper cells of Daesh [ISIS] after defeating them geographically,” ANHA quoted Rubak as saying.
“We appreciate the efforts of the people of the region and our partners in SDF to eliminate terrorism, and we will continue to work with our partners to serve the people of the region.”
About the establishment of an international tribunal to try IS’ elements, Rubak said, “We did not discuss this issue today with the Autonomous Administration, but the subject is very important, we are discussing it with our allies and the other parties, and we appreciate the region’s efforts to protect IS’ elements who are existed in the area, pending a way to try them.”
U.S. has for years supported the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the fight against the Islamic State group in Syria, as part of an international anti-jihadist coalition dominated by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG). But U.S. President Donald Trump abruptly announced the pullout from Syria.
The Kurdish PYD and its powerful military wing YPG/YPJ considered the most effective fighting force against IS. The YPG, which make up the backbone of the SDF forces, has seized swathes of Syria from Islamic State.
In 2013, the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party PYD — the political branch of the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) — has established three autonomous Cantons of Jazeera, Kobani and Afrin and a Kurdish government across Syrian Kurdistan in 2013. On March 17, 2016, Kurdish and Arab authorities announced the creation of a “federal region” made up of those semi-autonomous regions in Syrian Kurdistan.
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