David Petraeus: If Sharaa fails in his mission Syria will become another failed state

The former director of the Central Intelligence Agency, David Petraeus, affirmed his country’s support for Syrian transitional President Ahmed al Sharaa’s efforts to rebuild the Syrian state, and he believed that the SDF would eventually be integrated into the Syrian army.

In a lengthy interview with Kurdish media, Petraeus, who also served as commander of US forces in Iraq, discussed the fate of the Kurds in Iraq, Syria, and Türkiye.

He noted that the United States has been a strategic partner of the Kurds since 1991, and that this relationship continues.

He emphasized that the Kurds have other friends besides the mountains, and that includes America.

Petraeus praised the progress made in Iraq and the Kurdistan Region over the past two decades, adding that the Kurdistan Region still holds a significant position in Iraq and that it has been an example of what the right path should be.

Regarding Syria, Petraeus said, “I want Syria under the leadership of Ahmad al-Sharaa to succeed… His success as head of government is our success”.

Petraeus added, “We must help make that happen,” as from this perspective, he praised President Donald Trump’s steps toward lifting sanctions on Syria.

Speaking about Sharaa, Petraeus said he was much more aware of his past than anyone would imagine, noting that “during his tenure as Hay’at Tahrir al Sham leader, Sharaa built a real military capability… This wasn’t just a collection of tribal or political militias… He built a real capability, establishing governance in Idlib province… He had an education system, a judicial system, all of those things… Now he’s trying to bring the entire country together”.

Petraeus noted that this endeavor “will face significant challenges,” given the diversity of the Syrian population and the complexities of the relationships among them, acknowledging that Ahmed al Sharaa doesn’t have good experience with some of these groups.

Asked whether he believed Sharaa can establish a democratic government and society in Syria.

Petraeus said: “That’s his job… He has to do it… If he doesn’t, Syria will become another failed state, another one of the countries in the greater Middle East suffering the consequences of post-dictatorship rule”.

He added, “When we support Ahmed al Sharaa in his attempt to establish a government for all the people of the country, protecting the rights of minorities as well as majority rule, there must also be limits… There must be conditions on our actions… Just as Henry Kissinger and President Nixon used to say about arms control negotiations, ‘Don’t trust, verify'”.

Regarding the Syria Democratic Forces, Petraeus praised their role in defeating ISIS in northeastern Syria, stressing that they “continue to play a very important role,” but he believed that these forces would be integrated, in one way or another, into the national army.

He said, “I am pleased that General Mazloum is holding talks with Damascus to determine how his forces can become part of the federal forces”.

In this regard, Petraeus recalled his experience in Iraq, where he established what he called the Train and Equip Mission, which he described as “a very large effort to rebuild all the forces of the Department of Defense and the Ministry of Interior”.

He said: “Hundreds of thousands, and eventually nearly million-armed personnel, participated in various missions… We involved Peshmerga units… When we needed them to fight, not just for the Kurdistan Region, but for Iraq, they came and fought all over Iraq… I hope there will be something similar in northeast Syria, perhaps without all the governmental aspects of the Kurdistan Region, which were necessary at the time, given the situation in Iraq in general”.

Regarding the peace process with the Kurds taking place in Türkiye, Petraeus described it as “a very serious matter,” saying, “I think it’s very strategic… When Öcalan is leading this, it’s certainly not a simple thing… It’s not tactical”.

Petraeus noted that he deeply understands the true desires and aspirations of the Kurds, who want to be able to study in their own language, have a newspaper in their own language, and be recognized as part of Türkiye.

He added, “I feel that President Erdogan and his government are taking these aspirations seriously… I hope this will end successfully”.