The leader of the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on Thursday welcomed a call by jailed PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan for the Kurdish militant group to lay down its weapons and disband.
"We see this initiative in a positive light because it is about peace here," Mazloum Abdi said.
The SDF is dominated by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), viewed by Ankara as an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has led a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state that has cost tens of thousands of lives.
The Turkish army, which has troops deployed in northern Syria, regularly carries out strikes on areas controlled by the Kurds.
Turkish-backed groups have been attacking SDF-held areas of northern Syria since November, despite mediation efforts by the United States, which regards the force as a key ally in the fight against the Islamic State group.
"I think that if this step comes to fruition, its impact will also be positive for us, because Turkey has concerns about the PKK and the danger it represents for it. Because of the PKK, Turkey attacks our regions," he said.
Portraits of Ocalan are commonly displayed in northeastern Syria, reflecting his popularity. However, the SDF maintains that it operates independently from the PKK.
"The PKK's call to lay down their arms concerns them and does not concern our forces in Rojava (northeastern Syria)," the SDF chief said.
The SDF took advantage of the withdrawal of government forces during the civil war that broke out in 2011 to establish de facto autonomy in swathes of northern and northeastern Syria.
But Syria's new rulers, who are close to Ankara, have urged all armed groups, including the SDF, to hand over their weapons and have rejected Kurdish autonomy.
Abdi said: "A new Syria is forming, a new state is under construction, and of course the Syrian Democratic Forces must have a place in the new Syrian army.
"We don't want to dissolve the SDF; on the contrary, we think the SDF will strengthen the new Syrian army."
In his landmark declaration drawn up on the prison island where he has been held in solitary confinement since 1999, Ocalan said: "All groups must lay down their arms and the PKK must dissolve itself."
With AFP
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