ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Tuesday received a top delegation from the opposition Kurdish National Council (ENKS), with Sharaa affirming Damascus's "commitment" to preserving Kurdish rights, as an integration agreement with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) moves forward.

"President Ahmed al-Sharaa met today at the People's Palace in Damascus with a delegation from the Kurdish National Council, where he affirmed during the meeting the state's commitment to guaranteeing the rights of Kurdish citizens within the framework of the constitution," the Syrian Presidency said in a statement.

The meeting comes less than a week after a ceasefire and integration agreement between the SDF and Damascus was announced by the Kurdish-led force, aiming to enable a phased integration process of the Kurdish-led forces into the Syrian state, after weeks-long clashes.

The implementation of the agreement began on Monday, with Syrian security forces entering areas in Rojava (northeast Syria). The entry of the Damascus forces is supposed to be temporary, reportedly lasting only up to 15 days.

The agreement follows weeks of clashes between Damascus-affiliated factions and Kurdish-led forces, which saw Syrian government-linked groups advance on Kurdish-held positions in Rojava, raising concerns over Damascus's treatment of Syria's Kurds.

The clashes saw Sharaa issue a decree in mid-January, with the intent of safeguarding Kurdish rights, including provisions recognizing Kurdish cultural and linguistic rights, designating Kurdish as a national language that may be taught in public and private schools in Kurdish-populated areas, abolishing the effects of the controversial 1962 census in Hasaka province, and granting Syrian nationality to previously stateless Kurds. 

It also commits state institutions to banning ethnic or language-based discrimination and calls for a unified national message, with penalties for inciting sectarian or ethnic tensions, and declares March 21, the Kurdish New Year of Newroz, a nationwide paid public holiday.

The ENKS delegation welcomed the decree, considering it "an important step in strengthening rights and preserving cultural and social privacy," the Syrian presidency added.

Suleiman Oso, a member of ENKS's presidency, told Rojava-affiliated media earlier in the day that their delegation's visit to Damascus comes at the request of the Syrian foreign ministry, and said that they will issue a statement at a later time.

ENKS has yet to issue a public statement.