Türkiye on Wednesday said the dissolution of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) marked a key step towards strengthening state authority and achieving lasting stability in Syria. Türkiye has long regarded the SDF as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which waged an insurgency against the Turkish state for decades. "At this point, the dissolution of the SDF is an important development in terms of strengthening state authority across the country and bringing different segments of society together on a common political ground," Burhanettin Duran, the Turkish presidency's communications director, wrote on X. "It is of great importance for the establishment of lasting stability that the Syrian administration continues to pursue an inclusive approach," he added. The comments came a day after SDF leader Mazloum Abdi announced the group's dissolution in a televised address from the presidential palace in Damascus. Ankara has often said it consistently backs Syria's territorial integrity and opposes any form of separatism in the country. "It is crucial to establish a regional order... which is free from the tutelage of terrorist organizations, and where borders and sovereign rights are respected and protected," Duran said. Türkiye has also launched a peace process with the PKK, which announced last year that it was disbanding following a call from its jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan.
