The Consequences of the Kurdistan Region's Independence for Regional Security

In addition to the author's remarks, this book includes the translator's remarks and consists of five parts, conclusions, hypothesis testing, and lists of charts, tables, and maps.

The first part contains an introduction and discusses the foundations of the research, referring to the research questions and hypotheses, variables, literature, research methodology, and organization of the study.

The second part concerns theoretical discussions and consists of an introduction, two themes, and conclusions. The first theme moves from realism toward a comprehensive balance of power, the internationalization of religious and national questions, and the freedom of regional forces to address regional security problems. A comprehensive balance of power is presented as a robust approach to interpreting Third World countries. The second theme discusses national nationalism, the politicization of the national question, the transformation of the nation into a political project, comprehensive balance, and new threats.

The third part analyzes the Middle East security sphere. It contains an introduction, several topics, and conclusions. Its subjects include the characteristics of the Middle East and the nature of regional security; the security community and a regional security model; analysis of a Middle Eastern security community as a regional framework; critical security readings; and analysis of the Middle East security system. It examines how the Middle Eastern regional system can be effectively incorporated into the structure of the international system, the structure of the international order and its impact on the Middle East, the unipolar system and the consequences of September 11 for the Middle East, maritime balance policy, identity and security, and the security analysis of national identities in the Middle East. It also discusses national classification in the Middle East, a clear framework for defining nationality, and the identity question at national and regional levels through structural and international analysis, identity and security, and analysis of the security of the self and the other.

The fourth part discusses the history of political change in the Kurdistan Region from 1920 to 2017 and consists of an introduction, several themes, and conclusions. Its themes concern the creation of the Iraqi state; the emergence of Kurdish leaders and the beginning of the struggle for autonomy; Faisal's death and a new phase of the separatist movement; the emergence of the Kurdistan leadership; Abdul Karim Qasim's July 14 coup and the Iraqi revolution; Arab nationalists and the fate of the Kurdish struggle; Ba'ath Party rule and the transformation of the Kurdistan question; the March 11 Agreement and official recognition of Kurdistan's autonomy; the Iraq-Iran War; the Iraq-Kuwait War and the beginning of geopolitical change; movement toward an autonomous region; the American invasion of Iraq and fulfillment of the dream of Kurdish autonomy; the rise of ISIS and the shaking of Iraq; the opening of the path toward Kurdistan's independence; and the referendum of September 25, 2017.

The fifth part concerns the consequences of the Kurdistan Region's independence for the Middle East security sphere. It contains an introduction, several topics, and conclusions. The subjects include international, Kurdish, and Iraqi variables; the geopolitical limitations on Kurdistan's independence; Kurdish national identity and the demand for independence; self-reliance and economic independence; an integrated, independent, and strategic military force; problems of internal Kurdish leadership; the character and aspirations of the Kurdistan leadership; Kurdish success in diplomacy and foreign policy; state variables in Iraq; analysis of internal cohesion; Iraq's federal structure; supra-state variables; neighboring countries' domestic security concerns about independence; regional competition among neighboring states; the position of international powers on Kurdistan's independence; the international legitimacy of the right to self-determination in relation to the principle of preserving borders; the processes and path toward independence amid tension and the consequences of the Middle East security environment; migration; the perpetuation of violence in the Middle East; a peaceful path to independence; the consequences and reactions of Arab states; Islamist opposition; Arab non-state actors; geopolitical and psychological effects on international actors; and the growth and establishment of cultural models of participation in neighboring countries.