MOSCOW, December 28. /TASS/. The agreement to move Syrian army units to Kurds-held territories in northern Syria will be spread to the east bank of the Euphrates, the Al-Mayadeen television news channel has quoted the spokeswoman for the Kurdish Autonomy Administration, Jeyhan Ahmed, as saying.
She said the Syrian Democratic Forces consisting mostly of Kurdish units, supported the idea of putting the city of Manbij, 85 kilometers north of Aleppo, under the control of government troops.
"We’ve been working together with Damascus on blocking Turkey’s way," Ahmed said.
Earlier, a spokesman for Syria’s General Staff said the Syrian troops had established control of Manbij and hoisted the Syrian state flag there.
"The Syrian army was moved to Manbij in response to civilians’ requests and also in accordance with their task of restoring state sovereignty over the country’s entire territory," the news agency SANA quoted the General Staff’s official as saying.
After the United States’ decision to start the pullout of troops from Syria Ankara had hoped to take over Manbij and attach it to the security zone in the border area between Aazaaz and Jarablus. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on December 21 the Turkish army would clear that city of Kurdish forces.