Recently, several senior U. S. diplomats focused on Syria have been removed from their positions. This change comes as the U. S. aims to blend its Kurdish allies in Syria with the central government led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa. The diplomats worked at the Syria Regional Platform (SRP), which operates remotely from Istanbul and reports to Tom Barrack, the U. S. special envoy for Syria and a close adviser to former President Donald Trump.
Barrack, appointed in May, has been driving a policy shift towards supporting a unified Syrian state under Sharaa, who rose to power last year. A U. S. diplomatic source indicated that a few staff members at the SRP were informed their roles were ending due to team reorganization, stating that these removals would not change U. S. policy toward Syria and were not based on disagreements over policy.
The changes happened suddenly, and the official reasons for the removals were not made clear. A State Department official declined to comment on personnel changes but mentioned that core staff working on Syria continue their operations from various locations. Barrack has encouraged the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to accelerate their integration into the national security forces following a agreement with Sharaa.
However, some SDF leaders resist this pressure, wanting to maintain their autonomy gained during the civil war, especially amidst ongoing violence in Syria. Barrack recently held talks in Damascus regarding a plan for equal rights for all. The SRP has acted as the primary U. S. mission to Syria since the embassy’s closure in 2012.
With information from Reuters