Tom Brake – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Brake on 2016-03-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of Government support for Kurdish minority groups in Syria on the peace process in that country.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

Syrian Kurds, as with all minority groups in Syria, will have an important stake in a future political settlement for their country. It is for Syrians to decide the exact nature of that settlement, with the help and support of the international community and the United Nations. The Higher Negotiations Committee (HNC), which represents a broad cross section of the Syrian opposition, including Kurdish groups, has made clear its intent to enter into political negotiations with the Syrian regime to achieve a political solution to the conflict. Not all Kurdish groups are members of the HNC, or necessarily part of the internationally recognised list of Syrian “opposition” groups. But to be successful, any political settlement in Syria must be inclusive, taking account of the interests of all parties to the conflict.