Moscow Confirms Removing Iranian Troops 85 km from Golan

The border crossing between Syria and Jordan. AFP
The border crossing between Syria and Jordan. AFP
TT

Moscow Confirms Removing Iranian Troops 85 km from Golan

The border crossing between Syria and Jordan. AFP
The border crossing between Syria and Jordan. AFP

Moscow, taking a decision to go into discussions over Iranian presence in southern and southwestern Syria, announced on Wednesday an agreement being struck with Iran for its forces to withdraw to a distance of 85 km from from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

“As we took into account the Israeli concerns, we managed to attain the pullout of Iranian units 85 kilometers from the Israeli-(Syrian) border,” Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy to Syria Alexander Lavrentiev said.

Lavrentiev’s announcement comes a day after Russia’s ambassador to Israel Anatoly Viktorov firmly declaring that the border area would be free of Iranian presence.

Moscow’s moves translate into it taking solid but incremental steps towards resolving debate over Russia's ability to place pressure on Iranian forces and successfully pull them out from some of Syria’s terrain.

Lavrentiev stressed that the agreement on Iranian forces retreating from former positions in the Syrian south comes under the auspices of Russian efforts and is both upholding and implemented.

Moscow has preserved a balance of relations with both sides (Iran and Israel), a well-informed Russian diplomat working on relations with Iran told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“Iran is an important partner of Russia in a number of issues, and we are not exerting pressure on any party, but we seek to reach understandings that meet the interests of all parties,” he added while speaking under the condition of anonymity.

The diplomat went on saying that it was Russian efforts which realized a notable compromise, despite the strong opposition they faced by Israel, which was demanding the exit of Iranian forces from all Syrian territory.

Elaborating on Israel’s desire for an Iranian full exit, the diplomat said that Moscow can’t and doesn’t wish to exert pressure to achieve such a demand.

“That the relationship with Iran in Syria is a partnership in the fight against terrorism,” he added.

On another note and stretching a good 375 km, the Syria-Jordan border crossing remains closed despite Syrian authorities claiming that it is clear for operations.

“The road to the Nassib border crossing with Jordan, closed since 2011 because of war, is now operational,” Syrian Transport Minister Ali Hamoud said.

However, Damascus received no request from Jordanian authorities so far on reopening the crossing, he added.



Turkish Foreign Minister Says No Room for Kurdish Militants in Syria's Future

A handout photo made available by the Turkish Foreign Ministry Press Office shows Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (L) and Syria's opposition leader Ahmed al-Sharaa (R), also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, shaking hands during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, 22 December 2024.  EPA/TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY PRESS OFFICE
A handout photo made available by the Turkish Foreign Ministry Press Office shows Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (L) and Syria's opposition leader Ahmed al-Sharaa (R), also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, shaking hands during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, 22 December 2024. EPA/TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY PRESS OFFICE
TT

Turkish Foreign Minister Says No Room for Kurdish Militants in Syria's Future

A handout photo made available by the Turkish Foreign Ministry Press Office shows Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (L) and Syria's opposition leader Ahmed al-Sharaa (R), also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, shaking hands during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, 22 December 2024.  EPA/TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY PRESS OFFICE
A handout photo made available by the Turkish Foreign Ministry Press Office shows Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (L) and Syria's opposition leader Ahmed al-Sharaa (R), also known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolani, shaking hands during their meeting in Damascus, Syria, 22 December 2024. EPA/TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTRY PRESS OFFICE

Türkiye’s foreign minister said after meeting Syria's de facto leader in Damascus on Sunday that there was no room for Kurdish militants in Syria's future, calling for the YPG militia to disband.
Türkiye regards the YPG as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants who have fought an insurgency against the Turkish state for 40 years and are deemed terrorists by Ankara, Washington and the European Union.
Sunday's visit to Damascus by Hakan Fidan, the first foreign minister to visit Damascus since Bashar al-Assad's overthrow two weeks ago, came amid hostilities in northeast Syria between Turkish-backed Syrian fighters and the YPG, which spearheads the US-allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the northeast.
Speaking alongside Syria's de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, Fidan said he had discussed the YPG presence with the new Syrian administration and believed Damascus would take steps to ensure Syria's territorial integrity and sovereignty.
"In the coming period, the YPG must come to a point where it is no longer a threat to Syria's national unity," Fidan said, adding the YPG should disband.
The SDF played a key role defeating ISIS militants in 2014-2017 with US air support, and still guards ISIS fighters in prison camps. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned that the group would try to re-establish capabilities in this period.
Fidan said the international community was "turning a blind eye" to the "illegality" of the SDF and YPG's actions in Syria, but added that he believed US President-elect Donald Trump would take a different approach.
He said the new Syrian administration had told him during their talks that they could manage the ISIS prison camps, if needed.
In a Reuters interview on Thursday, SDF commander Mazloum Abdi acknowledged the presence of PKK fighters in Syria for the first time, saying they had helped battle ISIS and would return home if a total ceasefire was agreed with Türkiye. He denied any organizational ties with the PKK.
The SDF has been on the back foot since Assad's fall, with the threat of advances from Ankara and Türkiye-backed groups as it looks to preserve political gains made in the last 13 years, and with Syria's new rulers being friendly to Ankara.
Earlier, Türkiye's defense minister said Ankara believed Syria's new leadership, including the Syrian National Army (SNA) armed group which Ankara backs, will drive YPG fighters from all of the territory they occupy in the northeast.
Ankara, alongside Syrian allies, has mounted several cross-border offensives against the Kurdish faction in northern Syria and controls swathes of Syrian territory along the border, while repeatedly demanding that its NATO ally Washington halt support for the Kurdish fighters.
Ankara had for years backed opposition groups looking to oust Assad and welcomed the end of his family's brutal five-decade rule after a 13-year civil war. Türkiye also hosts millions of Syrian migrants it hopes will start returning home after Assad's fall, and has vowed to help rebuild Syria.
Fidan said all international sanctions imposed against Assad must be lifted as soon as possible to help Syria start rebuilding, offering Ankara's assistance on matters such as infrastructure development.
Sharaa told Sunday's press conference his administration would announce the new structure of the defense ministry and military within days.