Syrian Kurds on Wednesday, February 10 opened a representation in Moscow amid a push by the Kremlin to have them included in Syria peace talks despite Turkey’s objections, the Siasat Daily reports.
“This is a historical moment for the Kurdish people,” Merab Shamoyev, chairman of the International Union of Kurdish Public Associations, said at the ceremony in an industrial neighborhood in southeast Moscow.
“Russia is a great power and an important actor in the Middle East. It is in fact not only an actor, but it also writes the script.”
The opening of the representation — which Shamoyev said was a “big political step” for Syrian Kurds — came as global powers meet in Munich Thursday in a bid to revive Syria peace talks.
The opening of the office in Moscow is also bound to fuel tensions in Russia’s relations with Turkey, which broke down in November after Ankara shot down a Russian warplane on the Syrian border.
Those present at the ceremony have ties to the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), said Shamoyev.
Moscow, a long-time supporter of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, has said no negotiations could yield results without the Kurds but Ankara considers their presence unacceptable, given their desire for independence.
