As the deadline for the March 10 agreement approaches at the end of this year, statements by the two parties to the deal, the Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), have diverged over whether practical steps have been taken to implement its provisions, most notably military and security integration.
Sources within the SDF told Saudi channel al-Arabiya al-Hadath on Thursday, 25 December, that there are “points of convergence” with Damascus across most files. They said the two sides agree in principle on integrating SDF forces into the Syrian army, and that the SDF is not seeking to secede from Syria.
The SDF also announced that its commander-in-chief, Mazloum Abdi, intends to visit Damascus before the end of the year, adding that discussions have taken place with the Syrian government on decentralized governance and enabling residents to manage their own areas.
A source at the Ministry of Information, who asked not to be named because they are not authorized to speak to the media, told Enab Baladi that contacts and meetings with the SDF are currently halted. The source said the Syrian government is studying the response submitted by the SDF regarding the integration mechanism, while awaiting the resolution of related issues. The source added that an upcoming meeting between Damascus and the SDF is possible, but any talks in such a meeting would focus first on the Syrian government’s proposal, not the SDF’s proposal.
Meanwhile, the Syrian government’s Deputy Minister of Information, Obada Koujan, denied on his Facebook page on Thursday, 25 December, the accuracy of media reports claiming an imminent agreement with the SDF. He described those reports as “inaccurate,” and said contacts between the two sides are “currently halted.”
Koujan added that the figures and dates being circulated about an approaching agreement are “closer to wishes and hopes,” calling on media outlets to refrain from publishing what he described as “false and misleading” information.
For his part, SDF commander in chief Mazloum Abdi said during a meeting of the Advisory Body supporting the Negotiation Committee in al-Tabqa (in Raqqa province, northern Syria), held via Zoom, that the goal of the agreement signed with Damascus is to resolve Syria’s problems through peaceful dialogue in a way that preserves Syria’s territorial unity. He stressed the SDF’s commitment to the agreement’s provisions, adding that dialogue with Damascus “has not stopped, directly or indirectly,” despite what he described as occasional violations.
Abdi said the past months have seen notable developments in the course of dialogue compared to March. He expressed optimism about making progress in the coming period, particularly on security and military integration, border crossings, and subsurface resources, which he said “belong to the Syrian people and must be distributed fairly.”
He added that new meetings will be held with Damascus, and that any agreement reached will be announced jointly.
Responding to questions about the agreement ending at the close of the year, Abdi denied that it has any time limit. He said the ceasefire is not linked to the end of the year, and that returning to military solutions is “not on the table,” warning that the failure of negotiations would harm all Syrians.
Politically, Abdi renewed his call for decentralization as an option for governing the state and sharing authorities between the center and the regions, until a comprehensive constitutional settlement is reached during the transitional phase.
These statements come days after a series of clashes and exchange of shelling between the SDF-affiliated Internal Security Forces (Asayish) and the Syrian army around the Sheikh Maqsoud and al-Ashrafiya neighborhoods in Aleppo (northern Syria), and near the al-Layramoun and Shihan roundabouts north of the city.
What is the agreement?
Public negotiations between the two sides began after Syria’s transitional president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, announced that he had signed an agreement with Mazloum Abdi, the SDF leader, on 10 March.
The agreement included eight provisions, the most significant of which was integrating the SDF’s civil and military structures into state institutions.
Both sides also agreed to form executive committees to implement the agreement by no later than the end of this year.
Another agreement went into effect in Aleppo at the beginning of April between the Syrian government and the SDF. Researchers previously interviewed by Enab Baladi described it as a “trial balloon” for the broader agreement reached between al-Sharaa and Abdi.
The Aleppo agreement included 14 provisions. It stipulated the withdrawal of the SDF’s military forces while keeping the Internal Security Forces (Asayish), as a prelude to integrating them into the Syrian Interior Ministry.
The deal also included other provisions, including prisoner exchanges between the two sides, leading up to clearing the prisons.
On 27 April, the Syrian Arab Republic Presidency said the agreement would be a constructive step if implemented with an inclusive national spirit, away from narrow or exclusionary projects.
The Presidency rejected any attempts to impose a partitioning reality or create separate entities under labels such as federalism or “self-administration” without a comprehensive national consensus.
According to the statement, the SDF leadership cannot monopolize decision-making in northeastern Syria, where indigenous components such as Arabs, Kurds, Christians, and others coexist. It said confiscating any component’s decision and monopolizing its representation is unacceptable, adding that there can be no stability or future without genuine partnership and fair representation for all parties.
The Presidency also said Kurdish rights, like the rights of all components of the Syrian people, are safeguarded within a single Syrian state, based on full citizenship and equality before the law, without the need for any external intervention or foreign guardianship.
Diverging statements from Damascus, SDF on implementing March 10 agreement Enab Baladi.
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