The concept of Kurdistan national security between the possible and the impossible

Prepared by: Geostrategic Studies Team

Review and Audit: Ibrahim Mustafa (Kaban)

Introduction to research 

The need for a Kurdish national security has become an urgent necessity in front of local and international entitlements, especially after the development of the Kurdish issue in terms of international relations and the greater understanding of the major powers after the Kurds’ contribution to the fight against terrorism from the gateway to the war on ISIS led by the Western powers led by the United States of America, and mutual trust Which was formed between the Autonomous Administration in Rojava / northern and eastern Syria, and the Kurdistan region of Iraq, where the Kurdish military forces contributed to eliminating the presence of ISIS, in addition to the formation of this process for good relations and mutual trust between those major powers and the two Kurdish administrations, and thus the Kurdish political movement in the four parts from Kurdistan.

The Kurds possess all the geographical, political and military components to start establishing a new phase of Kurdish cooperation. Perhaps starting the national security project through the gateway to holding a Kurdish national and national conference has become an urgent necessity in overcoming the ordeals sweeping the Kurdish street, foremost of which are partisan conflicts that cause social, cultural and political gaps. Among the Kurds themselves, given that partisan differences in turn created Kurdish-Kurdish alignments, and a division that may reach the point of harming the unity of Kurdish society, and this would affect the process of the Kurdish revolutionary struggle in the four parts, after the development that took place in Rojava / north and east Syria, and what it produced The Kurdish federalism in Iraqi Kurdistan, and the extent of the threats engulfing the two Kurdish regions, from the dictatorial regimes that rule in Turkey, Iran, and Syria. Also, the process of single-handedly striking Kurdish parties without the other is the approach taken by the dark circles in the occupied countries of Kurdistan, and this means that if the Kurds do not move at this stage to preserve their political gains and relations with the international community, the next will have a dangerous impact on the Kurdish issue, which necessitates Immediate action and pressure on all influential Kurdish parties to work seriously and quickly to save the Kurdish issue at this sensitive stage in the Middle East.

Challenges and opportunities

The security environment in which we live is dynamic, uncertain, and full of many challenges, especially the aspect related to the Kurdish identity and its demographic presence, which is divided between the four countries “Syria - Turkey - Iraq - Iran". All its capabilities to strike the Kurdish revolutionary forces. Although these entities were unable to eliminate the Kurdish presence after the escalation of the Kurdish struggle and the development of the technology and media revolution, which in turn contributed to the transfer of crimes and massacres committed against the Kurdish people, and to the development of the work of the United Nations, human rights organizations and Western countries that exert pressure on the regimes of these countries that She was committing crimes without reaching public opinion.

International changes in favor of democracy, human rights and freedoms in Western countries contributed to perpetuating the process of fear and dread among the criminal regimes that were committing atrocities against the Kurds, and after the fall of Saddam Hussein, the “Iraqi regime”, the start of the Syrian revolution, the siege of Iran, and the pressure on Turkey, pushed these countries To change the nature of its dealings with the Kurds, especially after the formation of the Kurdish military forces in Iraq and Syria, the development of political life in Turkey, and the Iranian regime’s fear of developing the Kurdish file made it approach the issue with less violence than before. This entire process resulted from a more influential and fortified Kurdish reality. And the establishment of a Kurdish situation linked to international relations, and therefore the Kurds cannot be bypassed, whatever the nature of the injustice and criminal practices committed by the ruling regimes in the countries occupying Kurdistan.

Kurdistan Strategic Relations and Regional Influence

During the past four decades, models of relations were formed between the Kurdish political parties with the regional environment, including the regimes that were leading the genocidal war against the Kurdish people, and these relations may be due to compelling circumstances that cannot be understood and explained in a Kurdish way except within the framework of the narrow partisan interest that is trying to build itself at the expense of central issues. Although some of them are tactical and linked to specific periods, they must be disposed of in favor of the strategy of building Kurdish national security. Perhaps the idea of ​​relying on an occupier of a part of Kurdistan to fight the regime that occupies another part of Kurdistan was not correct, because the relations that bring together the four entities "Turkey - Syria - Iraq - Iran" cannot be penetrated at all, regardless of their inter-cultural differences, and the Kurdish experience in the region The fact that these countries were empowered showed their deep differences when it was related to the Kurdish issue. The four regimes that jointly manage the process of fighting the Kurds on the military and security levels would not prefer supporting a Kurdish party at the expense of their four-way relations to fight the Kurds. In fact, in many periods they overcame major problems among themselves when they were The Kurdish political movement constitutes a powerful movement for the national rights of the Kurdish people. These regimes are also fully aware of the extent of the impact of the development of the Kurdish issue in one part on the other parts, and therefore the Iranian, Turkish and Syrian regimes do not depart from the circle of joint action in the fight against the Kurdish liberation movement.

Therefore, the Kurdish relations must be strategic in order for Kurdish cooperation to be achieved, and abandoning any relations at the same level with the occupying countries of Kurdistan is the strategic basis for creating Kurdish understanding and cooperation, and this means keeping any relations of the Kurdish parties with neighboring countries within the utilitarian framework to strengthen the Kurdish cause and its general economy.

The occupying countries will not allow Kurdistan to achieve unity and understanding between the Kurdish liberation movement, and this is a fact. Rather, they will fight it by all means. However, international conditions and the development of the Kurdish cause and its relations directly help prevent hostile regimes from exposing the Kurds to genocide again. It is possible to equalize between creating possible conditions for dialogue and understanding on the principle of the two parties "the Kurdish political movement and the regimes in the occupied countries of Kurdistan." However, all these issues should be tactical only, as the strategic issues should be Kurdish.

The diplomacy of overcoming differences

Thinking that the Kurdish differences are eternal is illogical, as the inter- interests have healthy and appropriate relations to build stability, understanding and cooperation, and thus development according to the changes.

Since 2014, the Kurdish forces have been able to build good relations with the international community, especially in the fight against terrorism, where the Kurds have proven their capacity as a local and pivotal force in Iraq and Syria to fight the ISIS organization, and to highlight the civilized face of the Kurdish society, which is developing with the changes and circumstances, socially and geopolitically, albeit There are many complications in the Turkish move file and its central relations with NATO and Western countries due to circumstances related to Turkey’s historical role and its very important geography for Europe and the United States of America, but the trust created by the objective conditions in Iraq and Syria between the Western powers and the Kurds, also contributed to building military cooperation and support A clear Westerner of the Kurds, although this is within the understanding and inclusion of Turkish interests, but this relationship establishes better conditions that will be successful for the development and support of the Kurdish reality in the region, and this means the unity of the position and the Kurdish diplomatic movement at this stage is very important.

To learn more about national security and its strategic benefits, we quote some of the answers from the interviews and concepts that revolve around forming a complete picture of it:

The roots of national security go back to the seventeenth century, after the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648 AD, which was the basis for the birth of the nation-state. To use the term national security strategy, and one of the definitions of national security is the ability with which the state is able to preserve its internal, external, economic and military sources of strength in all fields to confront what threatens it at home and abroad, in war and peace, while continuing to preserve these forces in the present and the future in order to Achieving its goals, and national security is defined as the outcome of the state's vital national interests.

Characteristics and constants of international security One of the characteristics of national security is that it is a strategic concept that aims to study the future of the state in a scientific manner. It is also considered a relative fact in which states seek to achieve security at a minimum in order to achieve stability, and one of the characteristics of national security is that it is variable and is based on several complex factors: such as historical As for the constants of national security, they are the geographical constants represented in the geographical location of the state, the historical constants with what the state provided as a contribution to human civilization, and the cultural and religious constants Language, nationalism and heritage.

Dimensions of national security The concept of national security expresses in one way or another the policies pursued by countries with the aim of the safety of their territory and its gains, so that the concept expanded until it included many frameworks in addition to the security and military framework, which was largely in control of it as a term. Hence, national security has several dimensions, namely:

The political dimension: aims to protect the entity of the state, whether from the outside or the inside, through internal cohesion and social peace, and setting priorities in the face of other states and their ambitions. The economic dimension: this dimension seeks to develop the economy and its development, which contributes to providing the needs of the people, their progress and the achievement of their well-being. The social dimension: It aims to provide security for citizens and plant the roots of the spirit of belonging by achieving social justice and dissolving class differences. The military dimension: This is done by building a military force capable of imposing prestige in the region so as to deter any foreign ambitions. The cultural dimension: by protecting thought, beliefs and religion, preserving customs and values, and creating freedom and dignity. The people must be able to practice their own values ​​in their homeland independently.

The concept of national security

In order for the concept of “national security” to be clear, the term’s fragmentation must be addressed by presenting the definition of “security” and the definition of “nationalism” at two levels, namely the linguistic level and the idiomatic level, then addressing the most important definitions of national security, and also the four levels of security should be presented:

1. Defining security linguistically and idiomatically:

Security in the language is (the opposite of fear) and the triple verb (aman), which means achieve safety. Ibn Manzoor said: “I believed, so I am safe, and I believed in others, meaning against fear I feared, trust against betrayal, faith against infidelity, and faith in the sense of belief, and the opposite of it is denial.

As for the concept of security at the idiomatic level, it generally refers to achieving a state of absence of a feeling of fear, and replacing it with a feeling of safety in its psychological and physical dimensions.

2. The concept of national language and idiomatically:

The linguistic material for the word nationalism is (Q. W. M), and the people are the group that is associated with a place and resides in it. And when there is a nation of people in one land and its members practice life in one culture, there are other strong relations between them that revolve around common interest, solidarity and lineage, and social relations that make them one hand, and it is these ties that create what is called nationalism.

On the idiomatic side, the idea of ​​nationalism is as old as human society, and Ibn Khaldun expressed it with the idea of ​​nervousness, and the elements of nationalism among most Arab nationalist thinkers are common land, history, common culture, and common interests.

As for the issue of establishing nationalism, or rather, building a nation state, this issue is subject to disagreement. There are two opinions about the relationship of nationalism to the state. The first sees the state as an embodiment of the meaning of nationalism, and the second separates between nationalism and the nation-state, and this disagreement is due to the fact that nationalism is a social entity in which the previous basic ingredients are available, and it is natural that this entity tends to establish a political system that becomes a vessel for it, but this does not always necessarily happen. In all nationalities, there is a fragmented nationalism, or absorbed along with another in one state, and there is a nationalism without a state; Nationalism belongs to a group of phenomena related to the process of identifying or belonging to groups of people.

The most important definitions of national security

The concept of security has caused a great concern among thinkers and decision makers alike. Ensuring survival, security, and continuity has been the priority of domestic and foreign policy, and although it is a vague term; It is essentially a controversial term, but it remains a very significant concept, which is what Ronnie D. Lipschutz went to when he said: "There is not only a conflict about security between nations, but also a conflict between nations over the concept of security."

As we have shown, there is a great deal of disagreement about the concept of national security that it means different things to different people; National security has traditionally been defined as protection from external attack, and thus has been seen primarily as military defenses in the face of military threats, and this view has proven to be well narrowed; National security involves more than equipping and using armed forces.

What is more, such a vision might make one believe that the best way to increase security is to increase military power, and although military power is a very important component of security, in fact history is full of examples of arms races that have weakened rather than strengthened security.

Such races usually start with a country strengthening its military strength for defensive purposes so that it feels more secure, and this action leads to the neighboring countries notifying that they are threatened, and the neighboring countries respond to this by increasing their military capabilities, which makes the first country feel less secure, and the race continues.

This has led to the need to formulate a broader definition of national security that includes the economic, diplomatic and social dimensions, in addition to the military one. Arnold Wolff presented such a definition when he said: “Security, in its objective sense, measures the extent of the absence of threats to acquired values, and in its subjective sense refers to the absence of fear. from being attacked by those values. Treasure Cronenberg defines national security as “that part of government policy designed to create conditions favorable to the protection of vital values,” and Henry Kissinger defines it as “any behavior by which society seeks to preserve its right to survival.” As for Robert McNamara, "Security is development, and without development there can be no security, and countries that do not actually develop, cannot simply remain secure."

Accordingly, we can conclude from the foregoing that the concept of national security passed through two important stages as a result of global developments: In the first stage, it was viewed with a narrow strategic view, which is repelling a hostile military attack, protecting borders from external invasions, and preserving national independence. In the second stage, the state had to secure its citizens politically, economically, socially and culturally against multiple dangers imposed by the nature of the wide openness to the modern era.

After the end of the era of isolation and the spread of globalization thought, the sovereignty of the state declined and the independence of the national decision decreased in favor of regional or international powers. There are decisions that are issued in partnership between the national authority and other external authorities such as international organizations. In addition to being affected by external institutions such as the World Bank, the World Trade Organization and others, which is a detraction from sovereignty and national security.

Security levels

The importance of demonstrating the levels of security is reflected in clarifying the confusion between many concepts. These levels are divided into four levels as follows:

1. The security of the individual against any threats to his life, property or family.

2. National security against any external or internal threats to the state, which is expressed as “national security.”

3. Regional security with the agreement of several countries within the framework of one region to plan to confront the threats it faces.

4. International or global security, which is undertaken by international organizations such as the United Nations or the Security Council to maintain international peace and security.

Basic theories in international relations with regard to security issues

Proceeding from the relativism of national security, at the theoretical level as a concept, and at the practical level as a strategic framework, there are many schools and trends in analyzing what national security is, its dimensions and indicators, and despite the lack of a definitive classification of national security writings, there are three basic theories or schools of thinking in international relations. With regard to security issues, each has opposing visions, namely: the realist theory, the revolutionary theory, and the liberal theory. The following is a review of the most prominent components of those theories:

Realistic theory:

The realist theory focuses on the strategic dimension, and according to it, the state is the main international actor, if not the only one. As for the international system, it is characterized by anarchy due to the absence of a central international authority that commands, and therefore individual states take charge of their security, and defend their interests through the acquisition and use of force.

According to this realistic theory, security is the security of the state, which leads to regional integration, social cohesion and political stability of the state, thus preserving and containing the security of the individual and the group. Following the international division that occurred after the World War and the beginning of the Cold War between the eastern and western camps. The interest in security policies emerged more than the concept of security, and this was reflected in the United States of America by establishing the National Security Council. To play the role of coordinator between the strategies of the state. Since then, the use of the concept of national security has spread at its various levels, according to the nature of local, regional and international conditions.

Criticisms of the realist theory:

This theory places national security as a supreme value, which requires the transfer of national resources and their allocation for defense purposes, and increases the opportunity cost of these resources at the expense of development, and this may also lead to the police state model.

Limiting the concept of security to external dimensions, especially military threats from competing countries, and neglecting the internal dimensions of the concept.

Revolutionary theory:

Supporters of revolutionary theory seek to change the system, not just reform it, and see change as a duty; Because the system suffers from a state of clear injustice, and from here it is necessary to make a rapid and revolutionary change, and this vision has found a great echo in the study of North-South relations and development in the world of the South, due to the extreme poverty that the majority of the world’s peoples suffer from. Revolutionary theories exalt the value of justice, see war as a result of economic exploitation from the North and the South, and see the change in these economic relations as a key to solving the problem of war.

The liberal theory

Liberal theory rejects the assumptions of realist theory. For liberals, the state is not the only actor in international security relations, and the state is composed of many institutions and groups whose interests may vary and enter into bargains to reach a general agreement on those interests, and therefore the concept of security in liberal theory is not It is confined to the military dimension, but goes beyond it to important economic, cultural and social dimensions. This theory focuses on freedom of transactions and the mutual benefits that societies can derive from interdependence.

Concepts overlapping with national security

National Security and Foreign Policy:

In the beginning, it can be said that there is a logical overlap between the concept of national security and a number of other concepts that overlap with it in the same interests, and on top of these concepts comes the concept of the foreign policy of the state, which is mainly concerned with the international environment with which the state interacts and how to make international decisions, in addition to studying The behavior of international actors in the context of preserving the vital interests of the state and working to achieve them, a matter that overlaps with the concern of national security as well; As we have clarified from the definitions of national security, all of them refer to how the state protects its core values, which are national interests that it seeks to protect and achieve in the international environment, in addition to being an essential component of formulating the state’s foreign policy. The state’s foreign policy is defined as “the state’s work program in the outside world based on the goals and interests of the nation state,” but despite this overlap, there is a distinction between the two concepts; National security does not differentiate between the outside and the inside, or in other words, national security deals with the security of the state as a single unit. Hence, the internal and external policies fall within the scope of the interest of national security as protecting the values ​​of the state and preserving its integrity is not limited only to external attacks and the realization of the state’s interests abroad, but extends as well. To include internal safety as one of the things that could threaten the national security of countries, especially with the spread of the scenario of bombing countries from within; External behavior is an integral part of the state's overall behavior aimed at preserving its core values ​​in relation to the concept of national security.

National Security and the National Interest:

The concept of the national interest is an analytical concept that can be used to understand and explain the external behavior of a country and to understand the motives and reasons for the external behavior of international actors, and it is also used to assess the foreign policy of the state; As we have explained, foreign policy aims to achieve the interests of the nation state, and therefore the concept of the national interest may also overlap with the concept of national security; Each of them is used as an analytical concept for evaluating the state's external behavior, which aims primarily to protect the state's core values. However, the concept of national security has gone beyond the concept of national interest in terms of interest. It is also concerned with evaluating the internal behavior of the state, which made it overlap with another concept, the concept of public interest.

National Security and the Public Interest:

The concept of the public interest suffers from the same dilemma as the concept of national security. Both are concepts that include many dimensions and are concerned with the inside and the outside, and both of them can also be called a gelatinous concept that cannot be clearly defined due to the dimensions it includes, which is what caused many problems in the practical use of the two concepts, and in theory, each of them overlaps with the other to The boundary that makes it difficult to separate them; What is considered national security is a public interest and vice versa.

Dimensions of national security

The term national security was used to express the set of roles the state must take to ensure the safety of the region and the people, how to preserve the people’s gains, and how to defend this region. The state’s role is to defend the region and the people from all kinds of dangers, whether internal or external.

With the abandonment of the narrow concept of the concept of national security, which was centered around the military aspect and the importance of increasing the military aspect only, and also in addition to the openness of the whole world to each other, and the concept of national security was affected by international relations, the role of the state has also changed, and there are many dimensions that came under the umbrella of the concept of Security, and these dimensions that the state must protect are divided into five dimensions: the political dimension, the economic dimension, the social dimension, the military dimension, and the cultural dimension.

First, the political dimension

It is represented in preserving the political entity of the state - the region.. It is twofold, internal and external, and the internal dimension relates to the cohesion of the home front, social peace and national unity. As for the external dimension, it relates to assessing the ambitions of the great and major powers and regional powers in the state’s lands and resources, and the extent to which their interests coincide or conflict with the state politically, economically and socially. It is governed by a set of strategic principles that determine the priorities and priorities of security interests.

Second: the economic dimension

This dimension aims to provide the appropriate climate to meet the needs of the people and to provide them with the means of progress and prosperity. The field of national security is the supreme national strategy that is concerned with the development and use of all state resources to achieve its political goals. Economic growth and technological progress are the main and decisive means for achieving the state’s security interests, building strategic deterrence, developing trade exchange, exporting labor, and horizontal transfer and settlement of technology, especially high and vital technology.

Third: the social dimension

This dimension aims to provide security for citizens to the extent that increases the development of a sense of belonging and loyalty; Without establishing social justice through keenness to bridge differences between classes and develop services, national security is jeopardized, and this dimension is also linked to strengthening national unity as a main requirement for the safety of the state’s biomass, support for the national will and the unanimity of its people on the interests and goals of national security, and their rallying around his political leadership, and social injustice leads For certain classes or the increasing proportion of citizens below the poverty line to a real internal threat to national security that is difficult to control, especially in light of the aggravation of unemployment, housing, health, education and social security problems.

Fourth: the military dimension

The demands of defense, security and regional prestige are achieved by building a military force capable of meeting the needs of the military strategic balance and defensive deterrence at the regional level to protect the country from external aggression by maintaining this force in a state of constant combat readiness and high combat efficiency to defend the country’s borders and depth, and military force is the tool The main support for the foreign policy of the state and the formulation of its leadership role, especially at the regional level, and the military dimension extends to preparing the state and the people for defense and support for the war effort in times of armed conflict and to achieve the demands of deterrence in times of peace.

Fifthly: the cultural dimension

This dimension is based on protecting thought and beliefs and preserving customs, traditions and values, and it is what strengthens and secures the release of national sources of strength in all fields in the face of external threats and internal challenges, and broadens the base of a sense of freedom, dignity, and security of the homeland and the citizen, and the ability to achieve an appropriate degree of well-being for citizens and improve their financial conditions continuously; The cultural role is very important in immunizing the nation from the cultural theses of globalization and the clash of civilizations, if we take it in a comprehensive concept, including thought, culture, education, media, arts and literature; National security means “enabling the people to exercise their value system on their independent land.” In view of the multiplicity of dimensions, it can be said that the main goal of national security is to focus on the value of the human being. The broad popular base is the pillar of security, and although military force is important and required, but there Other forces include economic power, per capita national income, the degree of community growth, the prevailing political and social system that allows all the people’s forces to express themselves, the level of development, the equation between the standard of living and defense expenditures, determining vital interests at home and abroad, as well as defining vital circles and their priorities. .

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References and quotes

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2- hudson.house

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6- government.nl