Diplomacy of the Kurdish territorial nation

This article argues that focusing on the foreign policy choices of the Kurdish leadership since Mulla Mustafa Barzani began seeking autonomy within Iraq will shed light on the strengths and weaknesses of the Kurdish national movement. This essay sketches the rise of the Kurdish-American and Kurdish-Israeli alliances which aided the Kurds during the American occupation of Iraq. Due to Kurdish desire to consolidate their control over the hydrocarbon resources of their region, Iraq and the Kurdish Regional Government find themselves locked in a dangerous struggle, which involves Turkey, Iran and Israel. Particular attention is paid to the refractory nature of these alliances and the implications of Kurdish Iraqi autonomy to the Kurdish communities of the region.