Russia says Kurds must be allowed to make their case at Syria conference

"Response from the Russian Foreign Ministry's information and press department to a question from the Kommersant newspaper about the problem of Syrian Kurdistan". 

Question: What is the Russian Foreign Ministry's position on recognition of the independence of Syrian Kurdistan? I would like to ask you to comment on the Russian Foreign Ministry's position in respect of the participation of representatives of Syrian Kurdistan as an independent delegation at the international conference on Syria, if the conference takes place. Does the Russian Foreign Ministry support the Kurdish delegation participating independently in the Geneva-2 conference? 

Answer: In terms of determining which Syrians will take part in the international conference on Syria currently being planned, we proceed first and foremost from the Geneva communique of 30 June 2012, which refers to the government and to opposition groups, but does not refer to any one opposition structure. This formulation also features in the Russian-American agreements signed on 7 May this year, which formed the basis for the current efforts to organize the international conference on Syria. In particular, the Geneva communique provides for the formation, on the basis of mutual agreement, of a transitional ruling body that - as stated in the text of the document - may include "members of the current government and the opposition, as well as members of other groups". 

We have consistently called for the dialogue and political process that can bring an end to the conflict and the sufferings of the Syrian people, by allowing Syrians to decide the country's future independently and by democratic means, to be inclusive, and to rely on a broad social and political base, embracing all the ethnic and religious groups and layers in Syrian society.

This May, the Russian Foreign Ministry received an official request from the Syrian Kurdish Supreme Council - an organization that brings together almost all Syrian Kurdish political parties and movements - for assistance in ensuring that it has fully-fledged representation at the conference on Syria in Geneva. This request was confirmed in the course of a visit by the Syrian Kurdish Supreme Council to Moscow and a meeting at the Russian Foreign Ministry on 4 June. The Kurds justified their position by speaking of their desire to take part in the resolution of issues on the pan-Syrian agenda, and also by speaking of their inability to delegate these powers either to Syria's government or to any opposition structure, since at issue are the national rights of the entire Syrian Kurdish people, irrespective of their political leanings.

It is with understanding that we view the issue being raised in this way. The way in which it has been raised bears witness not to any separatist attitudes on the part of Syria's Kurds, but, on the contrary, to their desire to live in a united, sovereign and democratic Syria, where there must be no place for splits based on ethnic affiliation or discrimination on grounds of ethnicity, religion or language or any other basis, and where respect for the lawful rights of all communities is guaranteed. We believe that, at the upcoming conference in Geneva, the Syrian Kurds should be provided with the sort of representation that will allow them, on an equal basis alongside other influential and opposition groups, to state their aspirations and defend them as part of a pan-Syrian political process. 

As for your question regarding the "independence of Syrian Kurdistan", no Kurdish public or political figure has raised this issue in his or her contacts with representatives of the Russian Foreign Ministry. Our principled position is well known: we adhere firmly to the norms and principles of international law, based on the charter of the UN, including relating to respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states whose constitutions, naturally, may envisage various forms of state structure and administration.

 

Moscow Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation