“How does Kurdistan’s oil resources help facilitate the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) pursuit of political and economic independence?”

FINAL DISSERTATION PROPOSAL

The Kurdish issue of independence has always been an important and potent issue in international relations and geopolitics; however, it has now taken on another dimension with the discovery of oil and gas in the region. The Kurdish question is no longer just an academic question but, rather, it is reality in motion especially in regards to the Kurdistan Region in northern Iraq.
Moreover, studying the effects of natural resources upon the ambitions of statehood can serve as an interesting case study for analyzing other territories and governments in their quest for statehood. Although this is a Kurdish issue the underlying fundamentals are universal. The issues of self-determination, statehood, economic and political independence are factors that shape every territory across the world.
Furthermore it is important to research this topic in order to understand the future of Iraq and the greater Middle East. Iraq is in crisis, the unity of Iraq is in question, and the future of Kurdistan will undoubtedly shape the future of Iraq as a state. The Kurdistan Region is one of the few secure areas in the Middle East surrounded by hot beds of violence and destruction. The Westphalian borders that so many Hobbesian leaders relied upon in the Middle East have already eroded. Thus, the issue of Kurdistan is an interesting one. Will Kurdistan create stability across the region or will it undermine it? With its unified stance and strong security, as well as its success in containing and confronting the self-proclaimed Islamic State, it seems that Kurdistan can be a force for stability and peace in an ever shifting region. The dynamics of the region has drastically changed, the Sykes-Picot borders are being rewritten with full impunity by non-state actors while conventional players are helpless to act.
The Kurdistan Regional Government has morphed from a once neutral, toothless and local actor into a resilient, integrated and forceful participant containing and offsetting the spread of the Islamic State (ISIS) on behalf of the international community. The KRG government and its Peshmerga force are the only capable force fighting against the rise of ISIS and have become a symbol of hope and resistance as well as a model for the Iraqi army.

For nearly a century the Kurds have struggled for recognition and independence. This topic shall act as an academic journey that allows me to reach a specific destination and goal. In understanding the Kurdish cause, I hope to further translate the troubled and often neglected aspect of independence and its attainment within the world. This study while limited to the Kurdish struggle will no doubt help other peoples and states better understand the mechanisms of statehood and freedom such as the Catalonian issue.
The direction of my research will focus on Westphalian statehood, the system where states hold the power to control their territorial integrity and affairs as well as its conflicting influence upon emerging states such as Kurdistan. The international community continuously upholds the rigid Westphalian system of sovereignty even when completely erased in reality. The creation of new borders and territories is an extended process that often depends on the continent or region, for example South Sudan’s independence referendum was brought about by years of conflict while Scotland’s independence referendum was a result of public election and support.
There is a clear divide to independence, the guarantor of independence and peace in the region or continent in which the question lies. Catalonia for example will never see warfare in its desire to hold a referendum, the European Union and its democratic beliefs and values guarantees a peaceful environment no matter how hard and complicated the issue. Regions like Kurdistan, Tibet, Azawad or even Taiwan do not have such an environment where complex issues can be settled without the threat of conflict and warfare.
Within the realm of statehood or limited de facto sovereignty – I will analyze the fundamentals of the oil and gas industry in relation to the Kurdistan Region. The effects of the natural resources sector will play an important part of my research. The advantages and disadvantages of a natural energy sector will determine the future of Kurdistan. The notion of Kantian economics, where states or actors avoid conflict for the sake of economic prosperity is paramount to the Kurdish pursuit of independence. Thus Kantian economics and its relationship upon state behavior and peace for the sake of economics serve as the underlying notion that will drive my research.
Before Kurdistan and its people relied on the idea that they deserve a state because they are people with their own history, identity and culture irrespective of international norms or the views of the countries that the Kurds lived in. Kurds expected statehood because it was just and they saw it as their right. However, the countries that occupy greater Kurdistan had no realistic benefit to welcome an independent Kurdistan while losing territory and resources just for the sake of the Kurds.
However the brutal treatment of the Kurds at the hands of Saddam Hussein allowed the international community to create a Kurdish administered safe haven and later with the overthrow of the Baath regime, The Kurdistan Region was officially recognised as a fully autonomous region. Thus with greater prosperity and untapped reserves the Kurdistan Region is now in a position to benefit its neighbors and easing the idea and creation of a future independent Kurdistan.
Many of the issues surrounding political and economic independence are already underway in the Kurdistan Region; the question requires a current analysis of the Kurdistan Region and governance. Indeed this topic will detail the progress and route of the KRG’s “amicable divorce” from Baghdad.
I will employ a collaborative approach based upon qualitative and quantitative research from the KRG Ministry of natural resources regarding data surrounding natural resources. A mixture of both is needed, for example I will need to exact figures in dealing with the oil and gas sector while incorporating qualitative data in regards to the issue of independence.
The outline of my research will follow this order and will focus on –
• Introduction of Thesis
• Defining Kurdistan, the Kurdistan Region and the KRG Government.
• Oil and Gas sector in the Kurdistan Region
• Advantages & Disadvantages of the Oil and Gas sector
• Economic Independence in relation to commerce & the natural resources sector.
• Political independence and security
• The war on the Islamic State
• Issue of Kirkuk and Disputed territories
• International Actors and groups and their influence upon the Kurdistan Region
• Road to independence
• Energy Independence
• Conventional Independence
• Conclusion – Is Independence a realistic goal? Even if independence is attainable will it benefit the Region or will the KRG be better off in its current situation.
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