Title: International politics and the right to
self-determination : the case of iraqi Kurdistan
Author: Ali Kareem Nore
Place of publication: France
Publisher: université Clermont Auvergne (UCA), 2 (UCA)
Release date: 2024
The subject of self-determination as a core principle and a legal right for peoples, which enables them toshape their future according to current international law, remains legally and politically problematic. Thisthesis is an analytical study; it focuses on the influence of international politics and the political balanceof power on the implementation of the right of self-determination. The main objective of this thesis is toprovide a scientific interpretation of the right to self-determination, focusing on the case of the IraqiKurdistan Region in light of international law, the balance of power, and regional and internationalpolitics. The significance of this topic lies in its connection with the freedom of people to determine theirfuture, and to deal with ethno-national conflicts, as well as to ensure national and international peace andsecurity. The main problem is the legal principle facing the political balance of power. The key hypothesisis the realization of the right to self-determination depends on the political balance of power andinternational politics more than legal legitimacy. The Kurdistan Question started with WWI, whenKurdistan was divided between four countries: Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria, according to the Sykes-Picottreaty (1916). The case of the Kurdistan Region, and its claims to self-determination, is a complex subject,due to its national, regional, and international dimensions, and the role played by superpowers. The peopleof Kurdistan have the right to self-determination, but because of the absence of a balance of power, andthe oppositional policies of neighboring countries in addition to unsupportive international politics, theycannot exercise this right yet. Continuing to demand the option of independence requires the IKR to adopta different long-term strategy to change the current political balance. [1]