It has been a week since the Kurdistan region of Iraq, despite major protests from regional and global powers, successfully and peacefully conducted its independence referendum. Almost 93 percent of the population, including Armenians, Chaldeans, Assyrians, Yazidis, Kurds, Arabs, Turkmens, voted yes to a free and independent Kurdistan. Besides the question of what the effects of the referendum will be for the Kurdistan region itself, perhaps more pressing at this point is what the vote will mean for the wider Middle East. Will national borders be redrawn? Are we going to see a new conflict spurred by the Kurdish question? According to regional and international players such as Turkey, Iran, Iraq, the US, UN as well as number of so-called ‘Middle East experts and analysts’ this referendum and a future independent Iraqi Kurdistan will likely have destabilizing effects and lead to a larger regional conflict and civil war in Iraq. My position, as a Kurd and also as a specialist on security and Middle Eastern studies, is that these claims and statements are unfounded and Kurdish independence will most likely not lead to any serious destabilizing effects. This is due…
Why Did the Kurds Vote for Independence and What are the Effects for the Region?
October 2, 2017
