Efforts to build a politically unified Syria continue, as the Autonomous Administration (DAANES) and the Syrian Transitional Government (STG) remain engaged in intensive, U.S.-sponsored negotiations.

Earlier momentum—culminating in the March 10 Agreement between SDF General Commander Mazloum Abdi and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, which outlined a roadmap for integrating the Autonomous Administration’s territories with those governed from Damascus—was disrupted by expanding clashes between security forces loyal to each side.

These tensions escalated into heavy fighting in Aleppo, focused in the DAANES-governed neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsood and Ashrafiyeh. In early October, Internal Security Forces (Asayish) loyal to the Autonomous Administration clashed with pro-Damascus gunmen for roughly 24 hours before a comprehensive ceasefire was reached with U.S. mediation.

US Envoy Tom Barrack, SDF Commander Mazloum Abdi, Foreign Relations Co-Chair Elham Ahmed, and other top US government and Autonomous Administration officials meet to discuss integration and other issues

Following the ceasefire, SDF Commander Abdi traveled to Damascus with a delegation of senior officials from the Autonomous Administration and the SDF. There, they met with top STG leaders, including Syria’s Defense Minister, Murhaf Abu Qasra.

On October 13, Abdi announced that, after a new round of talks with President Sharaa, U.S. Envoy Tom Barrack, and CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper, a preliminary agreement had been reached to integrate the Syrian Democratic Forces into Syria’s Ministry of Defense and to bring the Internal Security Forces under the Ministry of Interior.

Abdi added that, while both sides agreed on Syria’s territorial integrity, the unity of national symbols, and the principle that no military solution exists to resolve their disputes, major disagreements remain—particularly regarding decentralization and the future status of the Autonomous Administration within Syria’s political system. Negotiations continue in an effort to bridge these gaps.

As part of the broader integration process, the SDF submitted a list of roughly 70 commanders from units that fought ISIS to representatives of the U.S.-led Coalition and to officials from Syria’s Ministry of Defense and General Staff. Under the proposal, these commanders would assume leadership roles within Syrian Army divisions stationed east of the Euphrates, as well as within special operations units reporting to the General Staff, with a focus on counterterrorism and coordination with the Coalition. As of mid-November, the Syrian Army and Ministry of Defense had not taken further action regarding the list, despite President al-Sharaa’s visit to Washington D.C. which resulted in a signed agreement for Syria to join the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS. Without SDF expertise, it is unclear how successful a Syrian integration into the Coalition would be.

These developments come as the Syrian Democratic Forces mark the tenth anniversary of their founding—and the eighth anniversary of the liberation of Raqqa from ISIS.

SDF personnel commemorate the eighth anniversary of the Liberation of Raqqa from ISIS in Raqqa’s stadium, once used by ISIS as a slave market.