Turkey says SDF dissolution crucial for Syria stability

Turkey's presidency said on Wednesday that the dissolution of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces was an important step toward stronger state authority and lasting stability in Syria.

Burhanettin Duran, the Turkish presidency's communications director, wrote on X that the dissolution was important for bringing different parts of society together on a common political ground. He said Syria's administration should continue to pursue an inclusive approach to establish lasting stability.

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.

Turkey has long regarded the SDF as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, which waged an insurgency against the Turkish state for decades.

Ankara, a close ally of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, has said it backs Syria's territorial integrity and opposes any form of separatism in the country. Duran said it was crucial to establish a regional order free from the tutelage of terrorist organisations and where borders and sovereign rights are respected and protected.

Turkey has also launched a peace process with the PKK. The PKK announced last year that it was disbanding after a call from its jailed leader Abdullah Ocalan.