ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A delegation from the Austrian foreign ministry visited the Kurdish administration in northeast Syria (Rojava) on Friday to discuss the humanitarian and security situation, as well as the latest developments in Damascus, and promised European support after Washington made dramatic cuts to its foreign aid.
“The members of the Administrative Body continued their talk about the national dialogue that took place some time ago, that it did not meet the aspirations of the Syrian people, that it did not take into account the sectarian, cultural and ethnic diversity that Syria enjoys, and also the marginalization and exclusion of forces in the areas of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria,” read a statement about their meeting from the Democratic Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (DAANES).
The National Dialogue Conference, held in Damascus on Tuesday, was backed by Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and was intended to be a step toward free and fair elections, the formation of an inclusive government, and the drafting of a new Syrian constitution. It has, however, been criticized for marginalizing minority groups. The Kurdish administration and Kurdish forces in Rojava were not invited.
DAANES condemned the conference on Tuesday, calling it “closer to exclusion and marginalization” than a true reflection of the Syrian people’s aspirations and said it ignored Syria's diverse communities and failed to include “the true representatives of the people.”
The Rojava administration and the visiting Austrians also discussed the difficult humanitarian situation in camps where Islamic State (ISIS) members and their families are being kept, especially after USAID funding was cut, according to the statement.
Washington’s decision to suspend foreign aid is worsening conditions in camps holding thousands of people with links to ISIS in Rojava, Human Rights Watch said last month.
Gunter Reiser, who led the delegation and is the deputy head of the security affairs department at the Austrian foreign ministry, said the Austrian government will focus on Syria, Rojava in particular, “to help ensure and obtain everyone's rights.”
“European countries will try to provide assistance to the peaceful forces present in this region, after the decision to stop American support for these camps, despite the difficult circumstances that European countries are going through, such as the war in Ukraine,” Reiser added, according to the Rojava statement.
The Kurdish administration also informed the Austrian delegation about ongoing attacks by Turkey and its militias on Tishreen Dam and Qere Qozaq bridge, “which increases the complexity of the security situation in North and East Syria.”
Kurdish forces in northern Syria have been under intensified attacks by Turkey and the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA) militias since the fall of the Assad regime.
