ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday called for a "permanent ceasefire" in a phone call with his Syrian counterpart Ahmed al-Sharaa, amid surging escalations between Damascus and Kurdish-led forces.

Macron expressed to the Syrian interim president, Paris's "concern about the escalation in Syria and the continuation of the offensive led by the Syrian authorities," the French leader wrote in an X post.

The statement comes amid renewed tensions between Damascus and Kurdish-led forces, with factions affiliated with the Syrian government reportedly capturing the city of Tabqa in Raqqa, located on the bank of the Euphrates, to the river's south.

Commander of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Mazloum Abdi said late Friday that the Kurdish-led force will retreat its forces to "areas east of the Euphrates," as a gesture of "good faith," moving to help bring about a resolution to the conflict. The fighting however, has continued despite Abdi's initiative with clashes reportedly continueing in several town in Raqqa.

"A permanent ceasefire is necessary, and an agreement must be reached on integrating the Syrian Democratic Forces into the Syrian state, based on the discussions held last March. The unity and stability of Syria depend on it," Macron said, referencing a March 10 agreement signed between Sharaa and Abdi to integrate the SDF into the Syrian state's security institutions.

The implementation of the March agreement has long been stalled by continued clashes between the two sides and disagreements on core governing principles, with the Kurdish authorities demanding a decentralized Syria while Damascus maintained its centralized stance.

A day earlier on Saturday, the French president called for Damascus's offensive against Kurdish-led forces to "cease immediately," saying that France and Europe "cannot support the continuation of such an approach" in an X post.

Abdi and US Special Envoy to Syria Tom Barrack arrived in Erbil on Saturday, where they held meetings with several top Kurdistan Region officials, including President Masoud Barzani to discuss the situation in Syria.

The Kurdish-led SDF has been a key ally of the west in the fight against the Islamic State, which took over large swathes of Syrian and Iraqi territories after their rise in 2014.