The history of the Middle East, especially those countries in which Kurdistan has been divided amongst them, is full of political and social events that, contrary to the will and decisions of the ruling nations and their oppressive governments, give a beam of hope to those dominated nations. For example, in the past 100 years of the region's history, we can mention the fickle relationship between the Kurdish and Azeri people. Obviously, the relationship between these two nations is important due to their common borders, and in some certain periods they have had common fates thus, it is a good idea to discuss the related topics to their relationship.
It is also very important to point out that the regional states have attempted many times to interrupt the normal and good relationships of the countries of this region as long as they were not in line with their interests and created an inconvenient situation. As an example, it can be mentioned that from the beginning of the national revolution in Iran, they always have tried to make Kurds and Azeris confront one another and the Islamic Republic of Iran has attempted to erase the history of these two nation's closeness and their cooperation during uprisings from the people's memory. They were successful at first.
However, as time passed by, the historical phenomena once again manifested themselves and the relationships returned to normal. The dominated nations felt the pain and suffering again and they made stronger ties and understood one another better as time went by.
The historical context of this understanding and the common sufferings between Kurds and Azerbaijan goes back to the time of the formation of the State of Freedom under Sheikh Mohammad Khiabani's leadership and later the formation of the "Azerbaijan Republic" by the "Democratic Party of Azerbaijan" made the relationship even stronger. In the Freedom Council, the representative of Kurdistan was present and later during the Republic of Azerbaijan, and at the same time in Mahabad city in the East part of Kurdistan, the Republic of Kurdistan was established by the Democratic Party of Kurdistan under Qazi Mohammad's leadership. The historical documents of the Kurds and Azeris prove that there was cooperation among the leaders of these two Republics. Some of the members of the Republic of Kurdistan went to Tabriz to learn some technical skills such as publishing and journalism and …. Hajar Mukriyani mentioned some of these cooperation in his autobiography called "Cheshty Mjewr". The solidarity for these two Republics grew among the left parties' intellectuals of Iran. M. A. Behazin, the well-known author and translator, and Nouradin Kianouri and many other writers have mentioned them in their books.
Today, one of the most important political relationships in the world that can affect the future political destiny of the region is the relationship between Azerbaijan and Kurdistan. When we say Azerbaijan, we mean both the Azerbaijan of Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan; and the reason for this is mentioned here.
The relationship between the East part of Kurdistan and Azerbaijan is important because these two ethnic groups together make up the majority of Iran's population. On the other hand, they have thousands of kilometers of shared borders. Throughout the history of modern Iran, these two nations have always been deprived of all their political, social, and cultural rights. Therefore, the formation of a new relationship based on mutual interests for the Kurdish and Azeri nations will be a significant achievement, and on the contrary, standing against each other and ignoring the relationship that is based on common interest and understanding can serve the occupiers of Kurdistan and Azerbaijan and weaken both nations politically.
The future of the region's political relations, if sensible plans are made now, could influence the agreements of the superpowers that last for 100 years.
On this occasion, we can refer to the latest political and diplomatic relations in the region which can give new meaning to the core of regional policies.
As it is known, on Tuesday, July 18, 2023, Nechirwan Barzani, the President of the Kurdistan Region along with a political and economic delegation, arrived in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan from Erbil and was formally welcomed by the Azerbaijani officials. This trip was inspired by the official invitation of Ilham Aliyev, the President of Azerbaijan.
For many reasons, this can mean more than a Kurdish delegation trip to an independent country. In this visit, Ilham Aliyev, the President of Azerbaijan officially welcomed the President of Kurdistan Region taking into account all the diplomatic protocols. On this trip, during the meeting of the two presidents, the flags of both countries were placed in line as a symbol of equality between the two countries and the two presidents; and the host country, that is Azerbaijan, took the Kurdish political delegation as an official delegation of a state with rank and identity and without noticing the counties of the region, they discussed their relations in two political and economic fields. According to Aliyev, these relations can have good results for both the countries of Kurdistan and Azerbaijan.
Let us not forget that this visit comes at a time when the political and economic relations between Azerbaijan and Iran are at a very weak point. On the other hand, Azerbaijan is one of the few Muslim countries that not only hides its relations with Israel but also considers it an ally. All these and the relations between Turkey and Ukraine, which has recently become stronger and Turkey even supported Ukraine's membership in NATO, and on the contrary, Iran's movements against Ukraine and NATO by sending drones to Russia is suggesting that the political and diplomatic relations in the region are changing.
