The recent global outpouring of support and solidarity from the international community, particularly the United States, to help Kurdistan combat the threat posed by the Islamic State (IS/ISIS) has challenged the old Kurdish saying that “the Kurds have no friends but the mountains.”
These developments have put to test the delicate diplomatic relations of the Kurdistan Region with the international community.
Following the fall of Mosul to the militants, the IS threat to the autonomous Kurdish Region became more imminent. Grave concerns were raised about the safety and stability of the Kurdistan Region due to the abrupt IS aggression on the Peshmerga forces, as well as the discrepancy between the modest firearms of the Peshmerga forces compared to the sophisticated US-made arsenal that IS had confiscated from the Iraqi army in Mosul and Anbar.
Since the fall of Mosul, the Kurdish leadership has been warning the international community of the IS threat, and has been calling upon allies to provide urgent humanitarian support to the thousands of internally-displaced populations, as well as much needed military assistance to the Kurdish Peshmerga forces.
Pledged of military and humanitarian support from France, the United States and others -- and President Barack Obama’s statement on the importance of protecting the Kurdistan Region -- indicate that the Kurdish leadership has successfully and effectively delivered its message to the international community through its diplomatic channels.
Obviously, the Kurds’ cry for help was not the sole factor for guaranteeing urgent assistance to the people of Kurdistan. Rather, it was the security, political and economic elements that encouraged the international community to respond to the calls of intervention.
As emphasized by the Kurdish leadership, it is pivotal to understand that IS does not only pose a threat to the Kurdistan Region, Iraq or the Middle East: IS is a well-organized terrorist organization with members from across the globe, making it an imminent threat to the world. As such, the international community has a moral responsibility to support the Kurdistan Region in fighting this menace.
Following the Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Kurdistan Region distinguished itself from the rest of Iraq. While Iraq plunged into perpetual sectarian rivalry, Kurdistan witnessed remarkable economic, political and social development. Peaceful coexistence of different ethnicities, religious tolerance, a prosperous democratic process and vibrant economic developments of the Kurdistan Region are being recognized and highly praised by the international community. The U realizes that preserving the safety, stability and prosperity of the Kurdistan Region is the only way to prevent a much bigger crisis that could affect not only Iraq but also the whole Middle East and the West.
Through its open-door policy, the KRG has successfully managed to engage the neighboring countries and Western powers in the political and economic developments of the Kurdistan Region. Thus, the international community sees Kurdistan as a valuable regional ally. Currently, a considerable number of Western powers and the neighboring countries have massive economic and political incentives in the Kurdistan Region, and are willing to protect and preserve their respective interests.
Thanks to the KRG’s effective foreign policy, the Kurds now have more friends than just the mountains.
* Niyaz Barzani, MA in International Politics from the University of Texas. He is based in Erbil.
