Conclusion

Summary

The concluding chapter draws lessons from the analysis developed in the preceding chapters and offers a recap of the historical case study of the map of Kurdistan in line with the evolution of self-determination. It then looks at the situation of Kurdish politics in the context of the crisis in the Middle East today. Since the start of the war in Syria, Kurdish nationalist politics gained a new momentum in the Middle East. The war in Syria led to the emergence of a de facto Kurdish region in northern Syria under PYD control and changed Syrian Kurds’ relations with the international community. Kurds in Iraq held an independence referendum much to the annoyance of Iraq and other regional states. Kurdish political party in Turkey passed the ten percent electoral threshold and entered the parliament. Moreover, cross-border interactions between Kurds in Iraq, Turkey, Syria and Iran further increased during instability and conflict in Syria and Iraq and the fight against ISIS. The chapter assesses these developments and what they mean for the idea of Greater Kurdistan.