"Iraq as an emerging Turkish-Iranian playing field
Commentary by
Monday, May 29, 2006
In the 16th century, Iran under Safavid rule and Turkey under the Ottomans were rising rival empires in a difficult neighborhood. Their conflicts and rivalry revolved mainly around Iraq and the Caucasus. Today, after a long pause, the situation is not altogether different.
After World War I, the territories that caused the friction and conflict between Turkey and Iran were totally lost by the two states, and the geopolitics of the region changed. Relations between Iran, Turkey, and Iraq were shaped by three realities: Pro-Western governments ruled the three countries, the Soviet Union presented a common external threat (in 1955, the three joined the Baghdad Pact under the umbrella of the United States and the United Kingdom), and Kurdish insurgencies and armed political movements presented a common potential internal or trans-regional threat."
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