SIPRI Yearbook 2016
IV. The Kurds in the Middle East, 2015
The Middle East continued to be a major source of instability in 2015. The ability of the region to export its problems to other parts of the world was amply displayed by the attacks of the Islamic State (IS), most notably in Paris, and the introduction of Russia as a combatant in Syria.1 Both the Russian intervention and the historic deal on Iran’s nuclear programme also had a bearing on developments in the region.2 In this tumultuous environment the estimated 30 million Kurds (see figures 2.5 and 2.6) generally held their own both politically and militarily, proving that they would continue to be an inseparable and difficult to ignore part of the region’s politics. There were important developments in the political trajectory of Kurds in Turkey, Iraq and Syria. In Turkey, a so-called solution process to the country’s perennial ‘Kurdish problem’ came to a bloody halt, but in Iraq and Syria Kurds made progress in pursuit of their political aspirations—even if they remained short of their ultimate goals. These developments are described in more detail below.
- Citation (MLA):
- Davis, Ian. "2. Armed conflict in the Middle East." SIPRI Yearbook. SIPRI. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2016. Web. 16 Feb. 2025. <https://www.sipriyearbook.org/view/9780198787280/sipri-9780198787280-chapter-002-div1-025.xml>.
- Citation (APA):
- Davis, I. (2016). 2. Armed conflict in the Middle East. In SIPRI, SIPRI Yearbook 2016: Armaments, Disarmament and International Security. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Retrieved 16 Feb. 2025, from https://www.sipriyearbook.org/view/9780198787280/sipri-9780198787280-chapter-002-div1-025.xml
- Citation (Chicago):
- Davis, Ian. "2. Armed conflict in the Middle East." In SIPRI Yearbook 2016: Armaments, Disarmament and International Security, SIPRI. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016). Retrieved 16 Feb. 2025, from https://www.sipriyearbook.org/view/9780198787280/sipri-9780198787280-chapter-002-div1-025.xml
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