Published by Ekurd Daily on 11/7/17

Staffan de Mistura, United Nations Special Envoy for Syria briefs the press on the first day of the Seventh round of the Intra-Syrian talks, Geneva, 10 July 2017. Photo: UN

GENEVA,— UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura reiterated in an interview with Sputnik the vital need for Syrian Kurds to participate in the process of drafting the nation’s constitution, adding that he believed their voices will be hard to ignore once this process starts.

“The Kurds are an important relevant community. Syrian Kurds will have to have a righteous saying in what will be the future constitution, or changes of the current constitution,” de Mistura said.

“At the moment, we are having technical talks about schedule and process rather than the actual constitution. When the time comes, it will be very difficult to ignore the voice of the Kurdish Syrian community,” he added.

The Syrian opposition High Negotiations Committee has a Kurdish representative in the delegation, the UN special envoy noted.

“We will cross the bridge when actually the constitution will become a drafting element among Syrians. It is safe to say that when the Syrians start working among them regarding the future constitution, all parts and components of Syria will be and will have to be included,” de Mistura said.

U.S regards the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party PYD and its powerful military wing YPG, which is part of Kurd-Arab SDF alliance, as key ally against Islamic State and the most effective fighting force against IS in Syria and has provided them with arms, air support as well as the military advisers.

The Kurdish People’s Protection Units YPG, which has 60,000 fighters, has seized swathes of Syria from IS.

Syrian Kurdistan’s ruling PYD has established three autonomous zones, or Cantons of Jazeera, Kobani and Afrin and a Kurdish government across Syrian Kurdistan (Rojava) in 2013. On March 17, 2016 Syria’s Kurds declared a federal region in Syrian Kurdistan.

Syrian Kurds on Dec. 30, 2016 have approved a blueprint for a system of federal government in Syrian Kurdistan, reaffirming their plans for autonomy in areas they have controlled during the civil war.

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