Tom Barak, US President Donald Trump’s envoy, announced that the United States has agreed to a plan put forward by the new Syrian leadership to allow thousands of former fighters from the opposition to join the National Army, provided that this happens in transparency.
Barack, the American ambassador to Türkiye, who was appointed as a special envoy for Trump to Syria last month: “I think there is understanding and transparency.” He added, “It is better to keep the fighters, and many of them are very loyal to the new Syrian administration, as part of the state project instead of excluding them,” according to Reuters news agency.
While two sources close to the Syrian Ministry of Defense revealed that Syrian President Ahmed Al -Shara and his close circle have repeatedly confirmed during their meetings with Western officials that the inclusion of fighters for foreigners to the army is less dangerous to security than to abandon them, which could lead them to the astronomy of al -Qaeda or ISIS.
3500 foreign fighters
While three Syrian defensive officials stated that the plan stipulates that about 3,500 foreign fighters, most of them are from Uighur from China and neighboring countries, to a newly formed unit, which is the 84th Division of the Syrian Army, which will also include Syrians.
China classifies the Turkish Islamic Party to which many Uighur fighters belong to a terrorist group.
In the context, a Syrian official and a foreign diplomat explained that Beijing sought to restrict the influence of that group in Syria. “We hope that Damascus will oppose all forms of terrorism and extremist forces in response to the fears of the international community,” said a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman.
And Washington, until the beginning of last May, was demanding Damascus to exclude foreign “militant” fighters from the security forces and the army to be formed, the bond of this condition to lift the sanctions.
However, her approach has witnessed a significant change in recent times, especially after Trump suddenly announced last month to lift all sanctions on the country, which has suffered for more than 13 years of a devastating war. He then confirmed that his decision would give the Syrians an opportunity for reconstruction.
