Turkey, Russia, and Iran Reject Syrian Kurdish Self-Rule in Joint Statement

Turkey, Russia, and Iran declared their mutual opposition to any self-rule in Syria’s Kurdish-majority northeast in a joint statement on Thursday. At the 16th International Meeting on Syria in the Astana Format, hosted in Kazakhstan’s capital Nur-Sultan, the three countries “rejected all attempts to create new realities on the ground, including illegitimate self-rule initiatives under the pretext of combating terrorism”. “Reaffirmed their strong commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of the Syrian Arab Republic as well as to the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and highlighted that these principles should be universally respected and complied…