UNITY WITHOUT POWER-SHARING: SYRIA’S STANCE ON KURDISH FEDERALISM

Abstract

Since the establishment of the Syrian Arab Republic in 1946, successive regimes have systematically denied the Kurdish population its fundamental national rights. The outbreak of the Arab Spring in 2011 sparked a renewed Kurdish political awakening, as Kurdish-majority regions in northern Syria transitioned from initial caution to assertive political and military mobilization. Rejecting President Bashar al-Assad’s (2000–2024) limited reform proposals and centralist vision, Kurdish political actors, backed by the United States, established a de facto autonomous administration in 2013, structured around three self-governing cantons. This development significantly altered the trajectory of the Syrian conflict and expanded the scope of foreign intervention, particularly by Turkey. Despite facing considerable territorial, demographic, and infrastructural losses, Kurdish-led forces, in coordination with international allies, successfully resisted existential threats, most notably from ISIS. The ousting of President al-Assad in December 2024 and the subsequent peace agreement between Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Commander Mazloum Abdi and interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa in March 2025 further underscored the Syrian state's enduring opposition to Kurdish aspirations for de jure autonomy. This article examines how the Syrian civil war (2011–2024) reshaped the Kurdish national movement, analyzing the interplay between Kurdish political mobilization, state fragmentation, and regional constraints that limited the realization of Kurdish autonomy within Syria’s political landscape. Through historical and political analysis, the study argues that the Kurdish struggle under al-Assad’s regime laid a critical foundation for future claims to broaden national rights. The experience of de facto sovereignty, despite its limitations, provides a crucial framework for advancing Kurdish political agency within a reconfigured, post-conflict Syrian state.