By Bosphorus News Geopolitics Desk
Mazloum Abdi formally dissolved the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) as an independent military force in Damascus on August 25, five days after declaring its integration into Syrian state structures complete. Türkiye welcomed the decision on August 26, while Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani publicly backed the integration process.
The declaration resolves the gap Bosphorus News identified on August 24 between integration and formal dissolution. Türkiye's own legal process asks a different question: whether the PKK/KCK and formations Turkish authorities identify as linked to them have ended their organizational existence and surrendered their weapons.
Abdi Ends the SDF's Mission in Damascus
Abdi announced the end of the SDF's mission at the People's Palace after its forces were integrated into Syrian army formations under an agreement with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa.
"We announce today the end of the mission of the Syrian Democratic Forces," Abdi said as he declared the SDF dissolved as an independent military force.
The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) said the integration process had been completed and the SDF would no longer operate as an independent military structure. Reuters and the Associated Press separately confirmed the dissolution.
That wording was absent when Abdi spoke in Qamishli on August 20.
He said then that the integration of the SDF's military, security and administrative institutions into Syrian state structures was "complete and finished" and that Kurdish fighters who had come to northeastern Syria from Türkiye, Iraq and Iran had left Syrian territory.
He did not announce the organization's dissolution.
Four days later, Bosphorus News wrote that a formal dissolution would carry political weight without by itself satisfying Türkiye's statutory verification test. The missing declaration came on August 25.
Türkiye Welcomes the Dissolution
Türkiye's Head of Communications Burhanettin Duran welcomed the move on August 26, describing the SDF's dissolution as an "important development" for strengthening state authority across Syria and bringing different sections of Syrian society onto common political ground.
Duran said Türkiye would continue supporting Syria's recovery and the ability of all sections of society to live in peace and prosperity. He linked the development to Ankara's "Terror-Free Türkiye" and "Terror-Free Region" policies and called for the Syrian government to continue inclusive steps.
His statement did not say Türkiye's verification mechanism had been completed, that weapons surrender had been certified or that the threshold established by Law No. 7595 had been met.
Justice and Development Party (AK Party) spokesman Ömer Çelik also described the dissolution as an important threshold for strengthening Syria's internal unity. Türkiye had repeatedly demanded that the SDF dissolve as Damascus moved to place armed formations under a single state military structure.
Türkiye considers the People's Protection Units (YPG), the principal Kurdish armed component of the SDF, linked to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). The PKK is designated as a terrorist organization by Türkiye, the United States and the European Union.
Türkiye's Verification Test Remains Open
Türkiye's PKK disarmament law entered its verification phase after Law No. 7595 took effect on August 18. The statute does not name the SDF.
Security institutions must first determine that the PKK, the Kurdistan Communities Union (KCK) and affiliated formations have ended their effective organizational existence and surrendered the weapons and ammunition under their control. A National Security Council (MGK) decision confirming that finding must then be published in the Official Gazette before the law's six-month application period can begin.
The coordination board implementing Law No. 7595 created four subcommittees at its first meeting on August 24 under Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz, including a Monitoring and Determination Subcommittee and a Disarmament and Strategic Coordination Subcommittee.
No MGK decision certifying completion of the verification process had been published by August 26.
Damascus now says the SDF has dissolved and its forces have entered the Syrian military structure. Abdi's declaration may form part of Türkiye's assessment, but it does not replace the determination required under Turkish law.
Barzani Backs the Integration
Barzani welcomed the development on August 26 and praised Abdi and al-Sharaa for advancing the agreement.
He described the integration of the SDF into Syrian government forces as progress toward greater security and stability in Syria and urged Kurdish parties and the country's other communities to support the process.
Barzani's intervention follows months of contacts between Erbil, Damascus and the Syrian Kurdish leadership over the future of northeastern Syria. The Kurdistan Region Presidency has backed dialogue within a unified Syria while pressing for Kurdish rights to be protected in the country's political order.
Changes on the ground had already moved ahead of the formal declaration. Syrian government forces entered Hasakah and Qamishli, while Damascus assumed control of Qamishli airport and key oil fields and former SDF units were reorganized inside Syrian army formations.
Abdi's August 20 statement established that integration had been completed but left the SDF's organizational status unresolved. The August 25 declaration removes that ambiguity, while Türkiye's separate statutory process continues to turn on organizational termination and weapons surrender.
Sources: Syrian Arab News Agency, Türkiye's Directorate of Communications, Grand National Assembly of Türkiye, Reuters, Associated Press, Kurdistan Region Presidency, Rudaw, Anadolu Agency, Bosphorus News review and reporting.