Research Information System
Ankara Üniversitesi SBF Dergisi, vol.77, no.1, pp.105-124, 2021 (Peer-Reviewed Journal)
In the process of the end of the Syrian civil war, Russia's contact with some groups of Syrian Kurds necessitated the historical background of Russian-Kurdish relations. Kurds have been on the political agenda of the Russians not only in the present but also in the past. Both Tsarist Russia and the Soviets considered the ethnic groups living in the regions, where they expanded in military and political terms, as partners in order to increase their domination in those regions. Some of the Kurds have also become actors with whom Russia has partnered in certain periods in the Middle East. In this context, this study will attempt to make a historical analysis of Russia's Kurdish policy. In this way, firstly, the academic and scientific dimension of Kurdish studies, which started in Russia in the middle of the 19th century, will be discussed. Then, the Kurdish policies of Russia during these eras will be discussed through historical facts.
In the process of the end of the Syrian civil war, Russia's contact with some groups of Syrian Kurds necessitated the historical background of Russian-Kurdish relations. Kurds have been on the political agenda of the Russians not only in the present but also in the past. Both Tsarist Russia and the Soviets considered the ethnic groups living in the regions, where they expanded in military and political terms, as partners in order to increase their domination in those regions. Some of the Kurds have also become actors with whom Russia has partnered in certain periods in the Middle East. In this context, this study will attempt to make a historical analysis of Russia's Kurdish policy. In this way, firstly, the academic and scientific dimension of Kurdish studies, which started in Russia in the middle of the 19th century, will be discussed. Then, the Kurdish policies of Russia during these eras will be discussed through historical facts.