The United States and the Kurds: case studies in United States engagement

Abstract

The United States has developed a unique relationship with the Kurds throughout the course of the 20th century Significant American engagement with the Kurds has been carried out twice this century, between 1969- 1975, and 1990- 1996. Both eras saw the United States able to influence events relating to the Kurds in support of a larger regional policy, only to find no easy solution to the Kurdish quest for autonomy. The result of these two periods of American engagement for the Kurds has been similar; both settings marked the collapse of a de facto Kurdish autonomy and the consequential splintering of the Kurdish resistance. The United States faces a variety of issues in its dealings with the Kurds. Foremost is the issue of autonomy for the Kurdish nation, and its impact on the territorial integrity of the states of the region. Secondly, is the lack of Kurdish unity, and its impact on any American initiative regarding an end to the repression of the Kurds. The United States has the ability to move the primary countries with Kurdish populations in the direction necessary for a settlement of the Kurdish situation. The result of not pursuing this matter could lead to further turmoil in a region which can ill afford it