1

The Co-Opting of an Independent Kurdistan

Omar Alansari-Kreger

The dream of an independent Kurdistan stands as one of the lost promises of the
last century. From a Kurdish standpoint the world powers that hampered out the map of
the modern Middle East were shafted in what was initially an act of arbitrary betrayal.
Despite the successes achieved under the flagship of the Iraqi Kurds, can they
coherently and competently withstand the challenges of independent statehood? From
a diplomatic channel the concept of Kurdish independence is rather controversial
because that runs contrary to Turkish and Iranian foreign policies; the combined forces
of the latter fear that Kurdish regions in their own respective territories will break off and
join Iraqi Kurds in what would become a Greater Kurdish Union.
Any hope for an independent Kurdistan rests almost entirely on the shoulders of
the United States. If that were achieved, a newly proclaimed Kurdish nation would
probably transform into a permanent base of American military operations; after all, geo-
political strings will be attached to the attainment of Kurdish independence. From a big
picture standpoint it must be realized that an independent proxy is always needed in
order to maintain regional stability which plays out in a way that defends the prevailing
status quo that dominates the entire region. From a tactical vantage point, a new
Kurdish nation can serve as a geographic barrier between oppositional forces that
desire the mutual destruction of each other.
However, it would be rather unfortunate if the Kurdish people had to pay the price
of state proxy-hood considering that the newly formed nation will be caught in the
middle of a great battle between sectarian geo-political interests. In this scenario it
seems that the moment American support declines will be the same moment when
Kurdish statehood is jeopardized as the nations of Turkey, Iran, and Iraq would eagerly
demonstrate an urge to absorb an independent Kurdistan back into their own respective
orbits. The aftermath of forced sectarian absorption is assured to bring about genocidal
crimes of the most heinous kind against the Kurdish people; if anything such actions
would fall into degenerative efforts of punitive vengeance.
On a side note Kurdish Americans must realize that it was the combined efforts
of independent humanitarian outreach organizations that sponsored them into the
nation as opposed to initiatives spearheaded solely by the federal government; serving
Kurdistan and the American dream does not necessarily imply that survivors of the
Kurdish Diaspora should become accessorized by American Foreign Policy from the
bottom up. In addition, an independent Kurdistan should also not find its sovereignty
2

accessorized by the same world power that endorses its independence. In the world of
the twenty-first century causes for national liberation are only considered if they prove to
be economically viable to a superpowers interests.
If an outside power invests in a cause that promotes national liberation, the
underwritten motive behind that action of support is overshadowed by an expectation
that demands a return investment. That goes on to transforms into a wide array of
political favors.