YPG and PKK no longer affiliated says US Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack

SYRIA – U.S. Special Envoy to Syria Thomas Barrack stated that the People’s Protection Units (YPG) in North and East Syria Region are no longer affiliated with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), stressing that the United States regards the YPG as a key partner and ally in the region. 

Barrack made the remarks in a podcast interview with host Mario Nawfal on the X-platform, clarifying that “There is another organization which is no longer affiliated with the PKK, SDF and YPG, which have been our allies in the D-ISIS campaign.”  

Observers view the statement as a setback for Turkey’s longstanding efforts to associate the YPG with the PKK and designate them as a terrorist organization. 

The YPG was founded in 2012 in North and East Syria, bringing together members from various local groups to defend their communities against terrorist attacks. Over time, it became a key component—alongside the Syriac Military Council—of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) which also partnered with U.S. forces in confronting ISIS in the Assyrian villages and towns of the Khabur River Valley.