UN Envoy Encourages Kurdish Parties in Syria to Engage in Dialogue https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/3850761/un-envoy-encourages-kurdish-parties-syria-engage-dialogue
UN Envoy Encourages Kurdish Parties in Syria to Engage in Dialogue
US envoy Nicholas Granger (second left) during his meeting with leaders of the Kurdish Autonomous Administration in the city of Qamishli. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
UN Envoy Encourages Kurdish Parties in Syria to Engage in Dialogue
US envoy Nicholas Granger (second left) during his meeting with leaders of the Kurdish Autonomous Administration in the city of Qamishli. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
US State Department Special Envoy to Syria Nicholas Granger is urging Kurdish parties to return to intra-Kurdish talks and resolve outstanding contentious issues between them.
Granger held meetings with leaders of the opposition Kurdish National Council and officials of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria.
In a meeting held in the northeastern city of Qamishli, Granger told Kurdish parties that US forces deployed in eastern Syria will remain and continue with their missions to guarantee the defeat of the terrorist ISIS group and promote security and stability.
Granger affirmed the US administration’s commitment to resolving the Syrian crisis through the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2254.
Moreover, the envoy discussed the course of dialogue between Kurdish parties, which have been suspended for two years.
In a phone remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Kurdish official Mohammad Ismail said the delegation headed by the US diplomat “confirmed that Granger was mandated by the US administration to meet and listen to all parties.”
“Granger conveyed Washington's view on many issues in Syria,” said Ismail, explaining that the envoy had discussed the steps for normalization of ties between Türkiye and the ruling Syrian regime, and the US position that opposes any normalization with the Damascus government.
Ismail pointed out that the Kurdish delegation that met with Granger had conveyed concerns about the recent escalation on the Syrian-Turkish border.
Also, the Kurdish delegation discussed the impact of Turkish ground and air attacks on the stability of the region.
Delegation members also relayed concern about waves of displacement.
“The new envoy conveyed to us his support for the Kurdish cause and its people,” members of the delegation said, adding that Granger had reviewed with them the deteriorating economic and living conditions experienced by Kurds in Syria.
Syria's Sharaa to Make Surprise Moscow Visit Amid Talk of New Tieshttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5234418-syrias-sharaa-make-surprise-moscow-visit-amid-talk-new-ties
Syria's Sharaa to Make Surprise Moscow Visit Amid Talk of New Ties
An entrance to the Qamishli airbase, northeast Syria, 27 January 2026. (EPA)
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa will arrive in Moscow on Wednesday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Syrian media reported, in a surprise visit that comes amid rapid shifts in Russia’s military posture in northeastern Syria.
The reports said Sharaa would hold talks with Putin, but did not provide further details.
The Kremlin confirmed the visit on Tuesday, saying Putin would meet Sharaa in Moscow on Wednesday. It said the two presidents were expected to discuss the state and prospects of bilateral relations across various fields, as well as the current situation in the Middle East.
A Syrian source in Moscow told Asharq Al-Awsat that Sharaa may ask Putin to hand over several “second- and third-tier figures who have direct links to attempts to inflame tensions along Syria’s coast.”
The visit comes just two days after Moscow carried out an urgent withdrawal of its forces and equipment from Qamishli airport, prompting observers to link the two developments.
Russian sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the evacuation was carried out at Damascus’ request after government forces expanded their control over areas in northeastern Syria.
The source said there was “no longer a need for a Russian presence in this region.”
Discarded equipment and supplies lie on the floor inside part of a Russian military base near Qamishli International Airport in northeastern Syria, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, where Russian forces have begun withdrawing from sections of the facility. (AP)
The reports on the Russian withdrawal from northeastern Syria coincided with field accounts by foreign correspondents describing heightened activity in the area, including the removal of military vehicles, armored units, and troops, which were transferred to the Hmeimim airbase.
A Syrian security source on Syria’s western coast said Russian military vehicles and heavy weapons had been moved from Qamishli to the Hmeimim airport over the past two days.
Correspondents in the coastal region documented intensified movements of Russian convoys over the past few days, most of which were carrying sealed crates.
A Reuters correspondent saw Russian flags still flying at Qamishli airport, along with two aircraft bearing Russian markings on the runway.
Russia has maintained a limited presence at Qamishli airport since 2019, smaller than its deployment at its airbase and naval facility on Syria’s Mediterranean coast.
In recent months, however, Moscow significantly reinforced its presence at Qamishli, deploying radar systems and missile defense units, and transferring a large number of vehicles and helicopters from Hmeimim to the airport.
The move had been widely seen as a sign of plans for a long-term Russian presence there.
Attention was also drawn to the fact that the Russian pullout was not limited to Qamishli airport, but also included positions in Hasakah province, which has seen security tensions between the Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces.
According to sources at the Russian airbase in Hmeimim, some of the withdrawing forces were redeployed to western Syria, while others were to return to Russia.
Russian sources did not rule out that developments in northeastern Syria would be at the top of the agenda during the talks, particularly in light of Moscow’s swift response to Damascus’ request to withdraw from the area.
The discussions are also expected to cover bilateral cooperation in various fields, as well as ongoing talks on restructuring the Russian presence at the Hmeimim and Tartous bases on new terms that serve the interests of both sides.
They may also include follow-up discussions, previously launched at the military level, on Russia’s assistance to Syria in rehabilitating the Syrian army, along with logistical requirements for maintaining military equipment, most of which is Russian-made.
A Russian military Ilyushin Il-76 strategic airlift aircraft prepares for take off from Qamishli International Airport in northeastern Syria's Hasakah province on January 27, 2026. (AFP)
The two sides have exchanged several visits at the level of their defense ministries in recent months.
Sources said the visit could lay the groundwork for “new arrangements in relations between Moscow and Damascus, after both sides showed a willingness in recent months to overcome points of disagreement and establish foundations for cooperation in various fields.”
Sharaa last visited Moscow in mid-October, when he met Putin for the first time. Their talks lasted about 2.5 hours.
At the time, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said the discussions covered several areas, most notably humanitarian issues, as well as energy, transport, health care, and tourism.
“Syria needs to rebuild its infrastructure,” Novak said after the talks, adding that Russia was capable of providing support in this area.
He revealed that the two sides discussed prospects for cooperation in other fields, including cultural and humanitarian areas, tourism development, and health care. He noted that Damascus had expressed interest in obtaining Russian wheat and medicines.
Novak added that Moscow and Damascus agreed to hold a joint intergovernmental commission meeting in the near future.
US to Conduct Multi-Day Military Exercise in Middle Easthttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5234414-us-conduct-multi-day-military-exercise-middle-east
The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier (L) transits the Strait of Hormuz on November 19, 2019. (AFP photo / US Navy / Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Zachary Pearson)
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US to Conduct Multi-Day Military Exercise in Middle East
The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier (L) transits the Strait of Hormuz on November 19, 2019. (AFP photo / US Navy / Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Zachary Pearson)
The United States on Tuesday announced a major multi-day Air Force exercise in the Middle East, as Washington and Tehran face off over Iran's deadly crackdown on anti-government demonstrations.
The announcement came a day after the US military said the Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group had arrived in the Middle East, dramatically boosting American firepower in the region.
The exercise will "demonstrate the ability to deploy, disperse, and sustain combat airpower across" the Middle East, the US Air Force component of Central Command, which is responsible for American forces in the region, said in a statement.
No date or exact location for the exercise were released.
The protests in Iran started in late December, driven by economic grievances, but turned into a mass movement against the ruling authorities, with huge street demonstrations for several days from January 8.
A US-based rights group said Tuesday it had confirmed the deaths of over 6,000 people in protests, adding that it was investigating over 17,000 more potential deaths.
President Donald Trump had repeatedly warned Iran that if it killed protesters, the United States would intervene militarily, and also encouraged Iranians to take over state institutions, saying "help is on the way."
But he pulled back from ordering strikes earlier this month, saying Tehran had halted more than 800 executions under pressure from Washington.
Syria Hopes to Hold New Talks with Kurdish Forceshttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5234347-syria-hopes-hold-new-talks-kurdish-forces
Members of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) queue to settle their status with Syrian government in Raqqa, Syria January 27, 2026. REUTERS/Karam al-Masri
Members of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) queue to settle their status with Syrian government in Raqqa, Syria January 27, 2026. REUTERS/Karam al-Masri
The Syrian government hopes to hold a new round of talks with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, possibly later on Tuesday, to spell out how the force would merge into the central state, a senior Syrian government official said.
Syria's government and the SDF have been locked in a year-long dispute over whether and how Kurdish civilian and military institutions, which have operated autonomously in northeast Syria for a decade, would integrate into the Damascus-based government.
After a deadline to merge passed at the end of 2025 with little progress, Syrian troops seized swathes of northern and eastern territory from the SDF in a rapid turn of events that has consolidated Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa's rule.
The two sides signed a sweeping integration deal on January 18 but have yet to hammer out the details, Reuters reported.
The Syrian official said that would be the aim of the upcoming meeting, which he said would be held "with US support".
Washington has been engaged in shuttle diplomacy to reach a lasting ceasefire and political resolution between the SDF - once its top ally in Syria - and Sharaa, now its favoured partner in the country.
The official declined to say where exactly the meeting would take place but said it would be inside Syria and likely in a neutral location - neither Damascus nor the remaining Kurdish-held cities of the northeast.
The spectre of resumed fighting between the two sides still looms over the talks, with Syrian government troops amassed around a cluster of Kurdish-held cities in the north, where Kurdish fighters are reinforcing their defensive lines.
The two sides agreed to a ceasefire that was extended on Saturday until February 8.
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