The Biden Administration and Rojava: Old Wine, New Bottle?

Abstract

AbstractOne of the domains of US foreign policy stuck on autopilot relates to Syria and, most importantly, Rojava (or AANES by its official name). The Biden administration inherited a quandary from its predecessor with no easy solution. On the one hand, the hostility of other actors in the region—especially Russia, Turkey, Iran, and Syria—render a continued US presence in northeastern Syria untenable in the long term. On the other hand, Washington cannot abandon its partners in the fight against ISIS as they did before—at least not before securing a deal beneficial to all sides. So what will President Joe Biden do with regards to Rojava? Will he adopt the policy enacted during Barack Obama's second term? Or will he implement a new policy to address the new challenges? This article examines the challenges for US foreign policy with regards to Rojava and, on the basis of the developments thus far, analyzes whether the Biden administration's approach will replicate Obama‐era policy.