📰 Analyst says Ankara–SDF shift opens “historic moment” for Kurds  

QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – Middle East analyst Adel Bakawan, director of the European Institute for Studies on the Middle East and North Africa (EISMENA), stated on Saturday that ongoing political shifts between Ankara, the Syrian Democratic troops (SDF), and regional actors are creating an unprecedented moment that could reshape relations in Syria’s northeast. In a post on his official Facebook account, Bakawan stated a potential meeting between Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and SDF Commander-in-Chief Mazlum Abdi has reached an advanced stage of preparation, describing the timing as “optimal” for both sides and in the “interest of Kurds and Turks alike. ” He stressed that the Kurdistan Region of Iraq played a significant role in paving the way for this emerging political landscape.

Bakawan added that if the Ankara–SDF meeting takes place, a follow-up meeting between Abdi and imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan is already being envisioned.   Such a development, he noted, would carry significant implications for regional Kurdish politics. as per Bakawan, Syria’s Transitional leader Ahmad al-Sharaa, is seeking help from both Saudi Arabia and the United States to prevent direct contact between Abdi and Erdoğan out of concern that Northeast Syria could evolve into a model similar to northern Iraq—something al-Sharaa views as a strategic threat. He argued that as long as Damascus strengthens ties with Riyadh, Ankara will continue to edge closer to political actors in Qamishli, further reshaping regional alignments.

Bakawan stressed that nationalism—not ideology, history, religion, or culture—is the primary driver of current regional calculations. Notably, he concluded that the moment requires “historic decisions” from Kurdish leaders, posing the strategic question: “Where should the Kurds align—Turkey or Israel, Iran or Turkey? ” By Jwan Shekaki