Russia ‘assured’ opposition to potential Turkish offensive, says SDF commander

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Mazloum Abdi, general commander of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), said late Friday that Russia has given them assurance that they will not tolerate a new military operation by Turkey against the Kurdish forces in northern Syria. However, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday that his military will go ahead with their new offensive in Syria.

Erdogan said late last month that his country’s army and intelligence were making preparations for a new military offensive against the Kurdish fighters in northern Syria in a bid to complete the 30-kilometre-deep “safe zone” that they were unable to finish during their latest offensive in 2019. Since then, countries including Russia and the US, as well as the United Nations, have expressed their concern over the new threats.

Abdi told Ronahi TV, a media outlet affiliated to Kurdish administration in northeast Syria (Rojava), during an interview aired late Friday that they have been in talks with Moscow regarding Ankara’s fresh threats. 

“So far, the position of Russia is good. We are in contact with Russians who have assured us that they would not accept such a thing. But we want them to have a stronger position - one that can prevent a Turkish attack,” said the Kurdish commander. 

On Thursday, Russia called on Turkey to refrain from carrying out a fresh offensive in Syria without a green light from Damascus.

“Such a step, in the absence of the consent of the legitimate government of the Syrian Arab Republic (SAR), would constitute a direct violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the SAR, provoke an additional escalation of tension in this country,” Russia's Foreign Affairs Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement, reported by Russian state-owned TASS.

"We hope that Ankara will refrain from actions which could lead to a dangerous deterioration of the already difficult situation in Syria,” she added. 

Turkey has carried out two military operations against the SDF in Rojava in recent years. It invaded the Kurdish city of Afrin in 2018 and Gire Spi (Tal Abyad) and Sari Kani (Ras al-Ain) in 2019. Erdogan threatened to control Tal Rifaat as well in 2021 but he did not go ahead with the plan. The leader has recently announced that they will begin their new operations with Tal Rifaat and Manbij. 

In a speech to members of his Justice and Development Party (AKP) on Saturday, Erdogan said they will go ahead with their new operation, adding that, "Our security area comprises the area 30 kilometres inwards from the border to our south. We don't want to be disturbed in this security area,” as reported by state media.

Turkey claims that the SDF’s backbone, the People’s Protection Units (YPG), is the Syrian extension of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and poses a threat to its national security. The PKK is an armed group fighting for the increased rights of Kurds in Turkey but it is designated as a terrorist organization by Ankara.

Abdi said they are taking Erdogan’s threats “seriously” because Turkish authorities have been making such threats constantly in the last two years. However, he warned that such a war will not be an easy one. 

“We have been preparing for a long time for such a war to protect our region,” said the commander who added that they are now “stronger” than they were in 2019. 

“A potential war will not be an easy one. It will not end in a short period of time - unlike Turkey’s expectations. It will be a hard war and will last for a long time. I do not think the Turkish state will win the war,” he noted.