Bilgay Duman is doctoral researcher at Abant İzzet Baysal University. He wrote his postgraduate thesis on “The Turkmen and Kirkuk in post-Saddam Period”. He serves as a Iraq Studies Coordinator at Center for Middle East Studies (ORSAM) based in Ankara. His articles and interviews have been published in the national and international press. He has frequently carried out field study in the Middle East, been part of international watchdog teams, and served as UN electoral watchdog during the elections in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Mehmet Alaca is an academic researcher focusing on Iraq, regional Kurdish politics, and Shia militias in the Middle East. He is currently an Ankara-based diplomatic correspondent and a non-resident fellow at Center for Middle Eastern Studies (ORSAM) based in Ankara. Mehmet holds an MA from the Department of Politics and International Relations of the Middle East at Exeter University in the United Kingdom.
The diversity and competition as well as cooperation among various Kurdish actors in the Middle East, and their relations with third parties, have not only an impact on the regional situation but also broader implications for the great-power competition among the United States, Russia, and China. Kurds are spread across Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey, with Kurdish actors engaged in political and armed activities in all four countries.
https://www.gmfus.org/publications/turkey-and-kurdish-factor-middle-east
