1 hr 17 min ago
This ceasefire is similar to a previous agreement
From CNN's Ryan Browne
The proposed ceasefire announced today seems extremely similar to the previous "Security Mechanism" agreement with Turkey earlier this year.
Here's what you need to know about the earlier agreement: As part of that agreement, the US convinced the Syrian Kurds/SDF to dismantle their defensive fortifications and pull fighters troops from the border to appease Turkey. The US also conducted joint patrols and shared intelligence with the Turkish military as part of that arrangement.
The Kurds complied with the request to pull back and dismantle their fortifications. Turkey opted to invade despite those efforts.
Now that the US has pulled out of all locations in northern Syria lest Kobani, it will be nearly impossible for the US to monitor much less enforce a ceasefire.
Asked about the prospects of a ceasefire given the fate of the now defunct security mechanism agreement, a senior US administration official said recently:
“We are very aware that the Turks entered into an agreement with us and they then decided that they would pull out of that agreement and we’re very concerned about that happening again."