Dissertation
Fluidity and Dynamics of De Facto Statehood: The Case of Iraqi Kurdistan
What factors can explain the dynamics of de facto statehood in Iraqi Kurdistan at internal, national and international levels? What has been the nature of the de facto statehood in Kurdistan since its inception?
- Author
- Kamaran Palani
- Date
- 07 July 2021
- Links
- Full text in Scholarly Publications Leiden University
This thesis explains the dynamics and nature of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq’s (KRI) de facto statehood since its inception in 1991, in particular the vicissitudes de facto independence since then. This dissertation characterises de facto statehood in Kurdistan, and uncovers the dynamics of de facto statehood in Iraqi Kurdistan at internal, national and international levels. Kurdistan’s de facto statehood (such as territorial control, monopoly on the use of violence, and engagement with the international community) is shown to be inherently characterised by fluidity. In this thesis, fluidity is defined as a highly unstable nature of de facto statehood in the relational context of non-recognition.
The dissertation reports on interviews with a number of high profile politicians and policy makers from the region to provide unique insights, among others the three main factors at play in the fluidity of the de facto state of Iraqi Kurdistan: the balance of power between the regional capital of Erbil and the Iraqi national capital of Baghdad; the level and form of internal fragmentation; and the change of strategies to gain international recognition.