OUT OF THE BOX: RECOGNIZE KURDISTAN (A GOOD IDEA IN ITS OWN RIGHT) TO STOP IRAN IN ITS NUCLEAR TRACKS

Issue 7, Summer 2011

There is a simple way to stop Iran from its nuclear ambitions, a way less costly than war and more effective than sanctions. It is by the creation of Kurdistan. Even a mere non-binding declaration by the US Congress to consider an option to create Kurdistan should stop the Iranian regime in its nuclear tracks, forcing it to refocus its attention on its internal survival. As an added benefit, the Kurdistan option would have a similar disabling effect on Syria. Iran and Syria might then cease to be political entities. The possible downside of this development is that it might destabilize and potentially break up Iraq and Turkey. This is a serious risk, but it could also open up new opportunities. Iraq and Turkey would face an added urgency in reaching mutually beneficial accords with their Kurdish enclaves. Their equitable resolution of the Kurdish problem would actually strengthen rather than weaken their national integrity...

"The Kurdistan 'call option' is a rare option in which strategic and humanitarian considerations fully overlap. It is a way to stop Iran from becoming a nuclear state, prevent war, disable terrorist states and movements, reinstate Turkey, stabilize Iraq, and reform the Middle East. It is the best of all available options. And, maybe, it is one of the few good options left."

Source: Bernstein, Michael S. (March 6, 2011). Harvard International Review. HIR Issue: India in Transition. Considering Kurdistan. http://hir.harvard.edu/india-in-transition/considering-kurdistan

Tags: Iran | Kurds | Nuclear weapons, destruction, and genocide | Turkey

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