Turning Enemies into Friends:Change in Turkey's Relations with KRG

"The best way to destroy an enemy is to make him a friend." said Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States and one of the remarkable statesmen of 19th century. His principle is still useful to understand today's international politics. Turkey and Iraqi Kurds are able to overcome decades-old hostility and establish a reliable alliance. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who in 2007 offended Iraqi Kurdish leader Mesud Barzani as a 'tribal leader' hugged him four years later when he was the first Turkish PM to pay an official visit to KRG's capital. This book attempts to explore the reasons lying behind the rapprochement and analyze the 180-degree change in bilateral relations from a political and economic point of view.

Autorentext

Minhac Çelik is a journalist and researcher specializing in the Middle East. This book is a larger version of his Master's dissertation on the shift in relations between Turkey and the Kurdistan Regional Government. The book focuses on the question of how these two former enemies have become best allies in the Middle East.

Klappentext

"The best way to destroy an enemy is to make him a friend." said Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States and one of the remarkable statesmen of 19th century. His principle is still useful to understand today's international politics. Turkey and Iraqi Kurds are able to overcome decades-old hostility and establish a reliable alliance. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdöan, who in 2007 offended Iraqi Kurdish leader Mesud Barzani as a 'tribal leader' hugged him four years later when he was the first Turkish PM to pay an official visit to KRG's capital. This book attempts to explore the reasons lying behind the rapprochement and analyze the 180-degree change in bilateral relations from a political and economic point of view.