NEW YORK: A landmark ceasefire and phased integration agreement between the Syrian government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces was announced on Friday, a deal senior Syrian officials described as a major step toward national unity and stability following years of conflict and stalled negotiations.

Speaking with Arab News in New York, Ibrahim Olabi, the Syrian Arab Republic’s permanent representative to the UN, described the agreement as not only a military and administrative achievement but a symbolic victory for all Syrians, one that reflects the country’s collective aspirations for peace, reconstruction and international cooperation.

He said that stability, equitable resource distribution and internal security underpin the deal’s significance. He also highlighted broad international support and specific engagement from countries such as Saudi Arabia and the US.

He said that Saudi Arabia had played a consistent diplomatic role in encouraging de-escalation and supporting Syria’s reintegration into the regional and international system, including through calls to lift sanctions and back state institutions.

As for Washington, Olabi said, it had come to view a unified Syrian state as serving US and regional interests, and saw integration within the Syrian government as the SDF’s most viable long-term protection.

“We are viewing the milestone that was achieved today as a success for all Syrians and for Syria. All Syrians benefit from stability, from having security apparatus in their towns. All Syrians benefit from resources being under the control of the state because they can be equitably distributed. The same thing goes for borders. All Syrians benefit when there is calm, domestically, which then also has regional implications and reconstruction implications,” he said.

“So, we view it as a success, as a victory for all Syrians.”

He added that the agreement built on existing momentum generated by earlier understandings and international endorsements, as well as shifting political and military realities, creating conditions that made this phase more likely to hold.

The core of the Jan. 30 agreement is a phased integration of SDF military units and administrative bodies into Syrian state structures, beginning with security arrangements and progressing toward full institutional incorporation.

This model, Olabi said, was intended to avoid abrupt shifts that could destabilize fragile local dynamics.

“The phased integration approach falls within the wider theme that the Syrian government has always been open to proposals, to ideas, to debate whatever really works in having a united, strong, stable Syria,” he said.

“It starts with the security component, then it goes to the administrative component, then it goes to state institutions. We thought one month would be a reasonable timeframe. The idea is not to rush things, but also not for things to take too long, all Syrians are interested in moving ahead to the future, putting the past 14 years of conflict and factionalism behind them.”

Under the agreement, SDF fighters will begin joining national security units and brigades, and Interior Ministry forces will be deployed in key Kurdish-held cities including Hasakah and Qamishli, where the Syrian government’s presence had been limited for years.

A new military formation, including three brigades drawn from SDF elements, will be part of the broader Syrian army structure, with Kurdish civil institutions integrated into the state’s administrative framework.

Olabi stressed that the accord gave time for orderly integration, not immediate absorption, and that this timeframe was agreed in consultation with the SDF to promote confidence and minimize friction.

Addressing concerns over the sincerity of guarantees for SDF members against reprisals or loss of status, Olabi pointed to the government’s longstanding overtures and previous interactions with the Kurdish leadership, and to the government’s conduct throughout negotiations as evidence of its approach.

“(SDF chief) Mazloum Abdi was welcomed in Damascus as a hero, not as a villain or as an enemy. The SDF as a whole were always welcomed in Damascus, and we were always engaging with them and always trying to find ways. They have seen that we have no interest in reprisals, no interest in the situation deteriorating. We would like to move forward. International partners have also noticed that the Syrian government has no interest in escalating a situation,” he said.

BIO

Ibrahim Abdulmalik Olabi was appointed the permanent representative of the Syrian Arab Republic to the UN on Aug. 19 last year. Before that, he served as special adviser on international legal affairs to Syria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates from Feb. 2025. He holds a master’s in public policy from the University of Oxford, an LLM in security and international law, and an LLB from the University of Manchester.

On the question of dispute resolution, Olabi made clear that all disputes would be addressed internally, through dialogue among Syrian factions, keeping the process fully within the country’s control.

“Any sort of disputes that may arise are things that we have to resolve together. The door has always been open. We didn’t want to resort to any military solutions, and the same will apply again. People have seen that we went into not one agreement, but four or five different versions of it. There is no judge or jury or adversarial group — it’s Syrian factions coming together to build the Syria they want.”

The agreement follows months of intense clashes between Syrian government forces and Kurdish armed groups in Aleppo’s Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafiyah districts in December 2025 and January 2026. The fighting left dozens of fighters dead on both sides and forced thousands of civilians to flee their homes. Several ceasefire agreements collapsed before this latest deal, underscoring the fragility of trust and the risks of renewed escalation.

Olabi said that the current deal differed because it advanced those earlier understandings into a more detailed, time-bound and technically defined agreement, shaped by new political and military realities and reinforced by international and UN backing

“We believe this agreement is the next step from the initial agreement. It has more technical details, more timeframes, and is more nuanced than the framework agreement signed a couple of days ago. International powers and the UN have welcomed it, and the new political and military realities all contribute to its success,” he said.

Saudi Arabia has welcomed the ceasefire and integration deal, lauding it as a step toward peace, national unity and stability. A Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement reaffirmed the Kingdom’s support for Syria’s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity. It said that the deal could help to advance security and stability, ease humanitarian suffering, and create conditions conducive to reconstruction and the return of displaced Syrians, while emphasizing the importance of a Syrian-led political process.

Olabi characterized Saudi support as consistent with the Kingdom’s long-standing backing for a sovereign, unified Syria.

“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been a key partner and key ally of the Syrian people, first of all, for many, many, many years and of the new Syrian government and the new Syrian leadership. We’ve seen that since day one. We’ve seen that when President Trump met President Ahmad Al-Sharaa; it was the first time that happened in Riyadh,” he said.

“We’ve seen their support for calling for the ending of sanctions, the institutional support that they’re giving in terms of working with us to build our capacity so that we have a stable Syria. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has been a key ally, and the fact that they are welcoming such a statement is in line with the policies that they’ve had in supporting a united, strong and stable Syria,” he said.

Tom Barrack, the US ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy for Syria, welcomed the agreement in a post on X on Friday. He described it “as a profound and historic milestone in Syria’s journey toward national reconciliation unity and enduring stability,” adding that it affirmed “the principle that Syria’s strength emerges from embracing diversity and addressing the legitimate aspirations of all its people.”

Olabi said that the US administration recognized the mutual benefits of a stable, unified Syria.

“The United States, under President Trump and his envoy to Syria, Ambassador Tom Barrack, have seen that it is in US interests to have a stable, unified Syria. They have also seen that the SDF’s best protection, best success story is within the Syrian government,” he said.

Barrack noted that this moment was of “particular significance” for the Kurdish people, whose “extraordinary sacrifices” and “steadfast resilience” have been crucial in defending Syria and protecting vulnerable populations.

The recent Presidential Decree No. 13 represents a “transformative stride” toward equality, restoring citizenship, recognizing Kurdish as a “national language,” and correcting “longstanding injustices” to affirm the Kurds’ place in a secure, inclusive Syria.

Earlier this month, President Al-Sharaa issued a decree formally recognizing and protecting Kurdish cultural and civil rights, including language and representation, as part of broader efforts to address longstanding grievances. The move was presented by the Syrian government as a state decision independent of ongoing negotiations with armed groups.

Olabi said: “That question should be separated from the rights of Kurds, because for us, the Kurds are a key component that live all across Syria — in Damascus, in Aleppo, in Afrin, in Idlib and elsewhere. As you know, the decree granting Kurdish rights was issued independent of the negotiation. It wasn’t an outcome of the negotiation, it wasn’t during the negotiation.”

Israel has continued military operations inside Syria over the past year following the removal of Bashar Assad from power, carrying out repeated airstrikes and ground incursions that Al-Sharaa’s government says have violated its sovereignty and killed Syrian civilians, even as it has signaled its openness to diplomatic engagement.

labi referred to a December 2025 tweet by President Trump after an Israeli incursion that killed 13 Syrians. “The Syrian government has said since day one that we will uphold the 1974 agreement between Syria and Israel, an agreement that withstood the test of time for over 50 years. We even engaged publicly and openly with Israel through US mediation,” he said.

“But Israel’s actions have been against Syrian interests. Syria is not going to be a threat to anyone. We are always open to diplomacy and constructive engagement. If there are legitimate security concerns, we can address them. But land grabs and destabilization are something we cannot tolerate. No government in Syria can give away Syrian rights.”

On how trust can be rebuilt after years of factional fighting, Olabi emphasized a distinction between the SDF as an armed faction and Syria’s Kurdish population at large, who have endured decades of discrimination. “The Kurds have seen our discipline in operations, the decree protecting their rights, and our openness to engage. That is why many chose to move from Aleppo to Afrin,” he said.

The Syrian government on Friday declared the Al-Hol and Roj camps northeast Syria, which house families linked to former Daesh fighters, as formal security zones. Security at the camp collapsed following the withdrawal of SDF amid intense fighting, with reports of escape by possibly 1,500 Daesh-linked individuals.

Humanitarian aid is now blocked. The camp holds roughly 24,000 people — mostly women and children — including about 14,500 Syrians, 3,000 Iraqis and 6,500 foreign nationals.

“The Syrian government inherited a very complicated situation at Al-Hol, with many families of former Daesh fighters. We have taken responsibility for both security and humanitarian management. We are also urging states whose nationals are detained there to take responsibility. The UNHCR and other UN agencies are engaged, and we hope to address this in a humane, just, and secure way over the coming weeks,” he said.

As Syria and the SDF embark on this integration phase, analysts caution that while the ceasefire provides a framework, deep-seated distrust, unresolved grievances and external pressures could destabilize progress.

Olabi, however, maintained that the focus remained on Syrian autonomy and the state’s responsibility to protect all citizens. “People have seen that we have no interest in reprisals. We would like to move forward,” he said.