Kurdistan Regional Government–Turkish energy relations: a complex partnership

Abstract

We analyze the Kurdish Regional Government's (KRG's) fast developing energy relationship with Turkey, its implications for Turkey's energy security and, ultimately, regional security in general. Being landlocked, commentators tend to picture the KRG as a highly dependent entity, desperate to export its oil and gas through Turkey. While it is true that currently the KRG has no real alternative export routes other than Turkey, we argue that the energy relationship between the two is more complex than Turkey simply agreeing to this proposal as part of its energy diversification project. For Turkey, the dealings with the KRG present the next best thing to having its own oil and gas fields; high levels of control, partial ownership, and close proximity are all required by the country that is increasingly eking out its position as a regional patron. A further strong incentive for Turkey to develop this energy relationship is new opportunities to approach some of the country's oldest and newest threats, the conflict with the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and the developing PKK-influenced Kurdish movement in a fragmenting Syria.

Kurdistan’s role in European energy security

“…Kurdistan being landlocked faces obstacles such as being highly dependent on the adjacent states, like Turkey, in exporting its gas. It is true the KRG has no real alternative export routes other than Turkey (Paasche, Howri, 2014). Also, some neighboring countries to Kurdistan may consider Kurdistan as an alternative to their natural resources, such as Turkey, Iran, Russia, and Azerbaijan.…”

“…The Kurdistan Oil and Gas Law were approved by the Kurdistan Parliament in August 2007. Erbil, the capital of the Kurdish autonomous region, not only has a long history of tensions with the government in Baghdad, but it is currently in the midst of a dispute over territory, degrees of autonomy, its budget, and power as well as control over oil and gas reserves (Paasche, Howri, 2014). In terms of oil and gas law interpretation, the Kurdistan region and central governments have many conflicts.…”

Turkish Domestic Actors’ Role in Foreign Policy Making: Case of Turkey – KRG’s Strategic Bilateral Partnership

“…Meanwhile, the literature about domestic developments affecting Turkey's foreign policy only confirms domestic forces' role in general, so is there some describing the mutual relationship of Turkey and the KRG. Paasche and Mansurbeg (2014) analyzed the partnership complexity driven by mutual interest with which Turkey could solve its vulnerability, while the KRG had no choice with its energy transfer to international market through Turkish soil. Yılmaz (2017) argued that internal drivers like mainly Turkish fight against the PKK and energy security and external drivers like the United States' influence both encouraged the energy relation between Turkey and the KRG.…”