Turkish Foreign Policy and the Kurdistan Regional Government

Abstract

This paper examines the Kurdistan Region’s increasing significance for regional politics, including its role in Turkish foreign policy. It also discusses Turkey’s foreign policy towards the Kurdistan Regional Government KRG since its creation and describes the stages the relations Ankara and Erbil have undergone since the 1991 Gulf War. Four different phases of Turkey’s foreign policy practice towards the KRG are pinpointed in this paper. Conclusions are also drawn concerning the KRG’s increasing role in a possible transformed post-Assad political setting and what this means for the regional balance of power, especially if the Kurds of Syria succeed in achieving autonomy. Finally, the study’s theoretical implications are also highlighted, considering its relevance in current international relations literature

Keywords

• Turkish foreign policy, KRG, Kurds of Syria, PKK, Baghdad, Sunni-Shia divide

References

1. In this article, the Iran–Iraq War (1980–88) is referred to as the First Gulf War; Saddam’s invasion of Kuwait (1990–1991) is called the Second Gulf War; while the US invasion of Iraq (2003) is referred to as the Third Gulf War.
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4. The US perspective on Ankara-Erbil relations focused mainly on its economic dimension, which supports this paper’s argument for the positive shift in Turkey’s political attitude towards the KRG, has been recently completed by, Matthew J. Bryza, “Turkey’s Dramatic Shift toward Iraqi Kurdistan: Politics before Peace Pipelines”, Turkish Policy Quarterly, Vol. 11, No.2 (September 2012), pp. 53-61.
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29. For instance, President Barzani was received by Erdoğan on 19 April 2012, and by President Abdullah Gül and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ahmet Davutoğlu on 20 April 2012, during a two-day official visit to Turkey to hold talks on bilateral relations and regional developments. After that, Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani also met with the Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs on 4 June 2012 on the occasion of his participation in the International Economic Forum.
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67. Josselin, “Back to the Front Line”, pp. 4- 5.
68. See, Charountaki, The Kurds and US Foreign Policy, p.253.