MOSCOW, February 6. /TASS/. The Kurds oppose any military role for Ankara in providing security measures on the Syrian-Turkish border, one of the political leaders of the Syrian Kurds, Salih Muslim, said in an interview with the Arabic international newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat on Wednesday.
"Any Turkish intervention in northern Syria would complicate things," Muslim said. "Residents should consider the presence of Turkey as an invasion, and should therefore confront it," he said. "We reject any Turkish presence and we demand an internationally-sponsored security zone in the presence of international observers against any Turkish intervention," Muslim added.
He said Syrian Kurds need international protection as they face the invasion of the Turkish army.
Muslim is the founder and has long been the leader of the Democratic Union Party (PYD) - the largest political organization of the Kurdish ethnic minority in northern Syria. Now he remains the leading politician of the Kurds and head the PYD’s international department. The People's Protection Units (YPG) are considered to be the PYD’s armed police and constitute the backbone of the Arab-Kurdish coalition Syrian Democratic Forces, which control 27% of the republic’s territory.
Muslim gave an interview to Asharq Al-Awsat ahead of the session of the American-Turkish commission which is due to be held in Washington this week and is devoted to the creation of a "security zone" from Jarabulus to the Faysh Khabur border crossing on the border between Syria, Turkey and Iraq.
On January 14, US President Donald Trump threatened Turkey with ruin if after the withdrawal of the American forces from Syria Ankara attacks the Syrian Kurds during its operations. Trump pointed out that "Kurds should not provoke Turkey, for their part." Trump noted that it is necessary to establish a "20 mile safe zone" (about 32 km - TASS) in northern Syria.