Al-Sharaa checkmates the SDF and Washington still wins

The US interest has long lied in a unified Syria.

Co-founder of Zenobia Advisory Group.

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Recent fighting between the Syrian military and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the Kurdish-led group controlling most of northeastern Syria, ended with the government significantly expanding the territory under its control, particularly in Arab-majority areas. Long the SDF’s primary patron, Washington brokered a ceasefire but sided with Damascus in declaring that the time had come for the SDF to reintegrate into the new Syrian state. This stunning pivot has been long in the making, especially since the ouster of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.