Abstract:
Through legal and political means, the Kurdish
referendum has created a de facto state in the north of
Iraq. This development will have short and long-term
impacts on security of the Middle East in general, and Iraq
in particular. The paper explores various dimensions of the
secession attempt by the Kurdistan Regional Government.
It concludes that the independence of Kurds from Iraq is
likely to destabilise the Middle East; and encourage other
ethnic communities to attempt secession. On the other
hand, various extra-regional actors may also try to
capitalise on the vacuum to advance their interests in the
region.
