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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) leader Masoud Barzani and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) chief Mazloum Abdi met in Erbil on Thursday to discuss Kurdish unity, a senior KDP official said.
Hoshyar Zebari said Barzani and Abdi met in Erbil and considered it a "significant achievement to strengthen Kurdish unity and position" as Syria is navigating a transitional phase, thanking "all our allies and friends."
Al Monitor first reported Abdi's scheduled visit on Wednesday.
Safeen Dizayee, head of Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) foreign relations department, confirmed the historic visit earlier on Thursday.
The invitation was extended during Barzani’s representative Hamid Darbandi’s recent visit to northeast Syria (Rojava), where he conveyed messages of Kurdish unity to Abdi in an effort to face the challenges in Syria.
“The situation in Syria with all the developments is a cause of concern to the international community and as we are in the region, it has a direct impact on Iraq and the Kurdistan Region,” Dizayee told reporters.
KDP and SDF have not commented on Abdi's unprecedented visit to Kurdistan Region's capital.
Last month, Abdi met with a delegation from Rojava’s main opposition coalition, the Kurdish National Council (ENKS/KNC), in the presence of the US-led global coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS), to discuss Kurdish unity going forward.
After the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s, the Kurdish National Unity Parties (PYNK) expressed readiness to return to talks with the ENKS.
ENKS has close ties to the KDP.
The PYNK is a coalition of 24 parties that have close ties with Rojava’s ruling Democratic Union Party (PYD) and have representatives in the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES).
PYD and ENKS signed a historic agreement, mediated by Barzani, in Kurdistan Region’s Duhok province in 2015 to end tensions and share power in Rojava but the deal was never implemented. Each side blames the other for the collapse of the agreement.
Hoshyar Zebari said Barzani and Abdi met in Erbil and considered it a "significant achievement to strengthen Kurdish unity and position" as Syria is navigating a transitional phase, thanking "all our allies and friends."
Al Monitor first reported Abdi's scheduled visit on Wednesday.
Safeen Dizayee, head of Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) foreign relations department, confirmed the historic visit earlier on Thursday.
The invitation was extended during Barzani’s representative Hamid Darbandi’s recent visit to northeast Syria (Rojava), where he conveyed messages of Kurdish unity to Abdi in an effort to face the challenges in Syria.
“The situation in Syria with all the developments is a cause of concern to the international community and as we are in the region, it has a direct impact on Iraq and the Kurdistan Region,” Dizayee told reporters.
KDP and SDF have not commented on Abdi's unprecedented visit to Kurdistan Region's capital.
Last month, Abdi met with a delegation from Rojava’s main opposition coalition, the Kurdish National Council (ENKS/KNC), in the presence of the US-led global coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS), to discuss Kurdish unity going forward.
After the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s, the Kurdish National Unity Parties (PYNK) expressed readiness to return to talks with the ENKS.
ENKS has close ties to the KDP.
The PYNK is a coalition of 24 parties that have close ties with Rojava’s ruling Democratic Union Party (PYD) and have representatives in the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (DAANES).
PYD and ENKS signed a historic agreement, mediated by Barzani, in Kurdistan Region’s Duhok province in 2015 to end tensions and share power in Rojava but the deal was never implemented. Each side blames the other for the collapse of the agreement.
This is a developing story ...
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