ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - President Masoud Barzani on Monday met with a senior delegation from Syria’s Kurdish opposition umbrella group, the Kurdish National Council (ENKS/KNC), in Erbil to discuss political developments in Syria and the need for greater Kurdish unity as negotiations with Damascus move forward.

“In that meeting, the political situation and latest developments in Syria were discussed, and light was shed on the necessity of unity among Kurdish parties in the coming stages,” read a statement from President Barzani’s office, adding that “emphasis was also placed on negotiation and dialogue to resolve issues.”

ENKS President Mohammed Ismail headed the delegation.

The meeting comes amid renewed Kurdish political engagement with Syria’s interim authorities.

On Saturday, Sulaiman Oso, a senior ENKS official, told Rudaw that a joint delegation from the ENKS and a Democratic Union Party (PYD)-led alliance - formed last year after a pan-Kurdish congress in northeast Syria’s (Rojava) Qamishli - will visit Damascus later this month to meet Syrian interim Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani and “his aides.”

An ENKS delegation held meetings with Shaibani and interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus last week, marking the first such talks between the council and senior Syrian state officials since the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

Regarding the meeting with Sharaa, Oso told Rudaw that discussions focused on the interim president’s recent decree seeking recognition of Kurdish cultural and linguistic rights, but stressed that such measures must be guaranteed in both the temporary constitution - approved last year - and the permanent constitution, which has yet to be drafted.

Oso said the delegation is expected to brief Mazloum Abdi - commander of Rojava’s de facto army, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) - on the outcome of the Damascus talks.

The SDF and the Syrian government reached an internationally brokered agreement on January 29 following weeks of clashes across northern and northeastern Syria.

On Friday, Barzani - leader of Kurdistan Region’s ruling Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) - hosted Abdi and other senior Rojava officials in Erbil to discuss the implementation of a ceasefire and an integration agreement between the SDF and Damascus.

The deal, facilitated mainly by the US and France, aims to end hostilities and integrate the civil and military institutions of Rojava under Syrian state authority.

It followed a mid-January offensive by the Syrian Arab Army and allied armed groups targeting SDF-held areas.