On April 27, 2009, the Section of Kurdish Studies and Regional Problems of the Department of Near and Middle East of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences held a round table "Current state of the Kurdish issue in Turkey", which was attended by representatives of a number of research centers and public Kurdish organizations in Moscow. The discussion revolved around three reports of the sector's employees-O. I. Zhigalina, K. V. Vertyaev and N. Z. Mosaki.

O. I. Zhigalina's report was devoted to the analysis of the position of the new American administration on the Kurdish issue, set out by US President Boris Johnson. Washington is interested in a stable domestic political situation in this country, its strategic partner in NATO, and preserving the territorial integrity of the Republic of Turkey. He intends to assist Turkey in eliminating the activities of the Kurdistan Workers ' Party (PKK), in maintaining normal good-neighborly Turkish-Iraqi relations and Turkey's relations with Iranian Kurdistan, as well as in carrying out reforms in Turkish Kurdistan by the Turkish authorities in order to grant Kurds cultural autonomy, freedom of expression and religion. At the same time, according to O. I. Zhigalina, despite the efforts of the Turkish leadership to smooth out tensions in the Kurdish area (which is to some extent due to the desire to join the EU), the Kurdish issue in Turkey will not be resolved in the foreseeable future.

K. Vertyaev, analyzing the positions of the Turkish authorities on the Kurdish issue, noted that the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) supports a peaceful settlement of the conflict with the Turkish Kurds, as evidenced, in particular, by the opening of a TV channel broadcasting in the Kurdish language. This is explained by the need to reduce the ideological and political influence of the Kurdish media of Iraqi Kurdistan on Turkish Kurdistan. During the municipal election campaign, even the head of state addressed the electorate in Kurdish to boost the declining rating of the ruling party in Turkish Kurdistan at the expense of Kurdish voters. The speaker noted that the Turkish leadership seeks to resolve the conflict with Kurdish fighters by nonviolent measures, which will serve to strengthen economic ties with Iraqi Kurdistan, which is the "center of attraction" for the Kurdish population of Turkish Kurdistan. This political line is apparently supported by the Turkish military.

The struggle of political parties in the municipal elections in Turkish Kurdistan was at the center of the speech of N. Z. Mosaki, who emphasized the important political function of the Democratic Society Party (PDO), which expressed the interests of the Kurdish population in municipal elections. Her victory means a decline in the popularity of the ruling party (AKP) in Turkish Kurdistan, whose leadership has taken measures to improve relations with the local administration. Modern realities, according to N. Z. Mosaki, require new ways to solve the Kurdish issue. This is due to the fact that its relevance decreases in areas of favorable economic development of Turkish Kurdistan and increases in underdeveloped Kurdish areas. No Kurdish party is now raising the question of an independent Kurdistan, but is leaning towards limited democracy and economic development in Turkish Kurdistan. The Kurdish problem, according to the expert, is increasingly becoming an internal political conflict, and its solution lies in the region itself.

The speakers noted the positive trends in the resolution of the Kurdish issue that have recently emerged in the policy of the Turkish leadership. They put forward a thesis about Turkey's desire to form a new political concept and pursue an independent "Kurdish" policy. Such measures are stimulated by the new geopolitical realities associated with the change in the policy of the new US administration in West Asia, as well as Turkey's relations with Iraqi Kurdistan and Armenia, which share a common border with it, as well as its interest in joining the EU, etc.

Employees of the department participated in the discussion: G. I. Starchenkov, B. M. Potskhveria, S. M. Ivanov, and S. B. Druzhtovsky (MGIMO(U)). Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation), I. A. Svistunova (MGIMO (U) Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation), A. G. Areshev (Strategic Culture Foundation), I. V. Petrakov (ARD), M. D. Shamoev (Chairman of the International Union of Kurdish Public Associations).

SB. Druzhilovsky, in particular, noted that although Turkey is on the verge of political changes, it is still too early to assess its new course in the Kurdish issue. The positive intentions of Turkish politicians and military personnel have not yet been supported by any legal acts or regulations. The PDO that won the municipal elections is not a well-established organization that consists of various factions, so its course is not yet fully understood. However, now Turkish leaders are also clearly aware of the unacceptability of a military solution to the Kurdish problem in Turkey.

Shamoev stressed that Kurds in Turkish Kurdistan are fighting for their rights. They supported the PDO in the elections. The AKP was disappointed with the election results, and this affected the Kurds: some members of the EAP were arrested and sentenced to 10 months in prison. At the same time, the PKK declared a unilateral moratorium on military operations for the duration of the elections. The PKK's military wing has even agreed to extend the moratorium, but the Turkish military is preventing a peaceful democratic solution. The PKK does not seek to dismember Turkey. This is also indicated by A. Ocalan, who, while in prison, proposes to transform ethnic Kurdistan into a confederation.

Turkey's intentions to mitigate the situation in Turkish Kurdistan, according to the expert, have no legal basis. For a radical solution to the problem, it is necessary to amend the Turkish Constitution, which is hardly possible. At the same time, M. Shamoev assessed the meeting of B. Obama with the head of the PDO A. Turk as a positive step. He also expressed the wish that the Russian leaders would formulate their position on the Kurdish issue.

K. V. Vertyaev, speaking in the debate, noted that A. Ocalan, the main ideologist of the PKK, which stands on the positions of democratic federalism, sees the Kurds of ethnic Kurdistan as a single nation. In order to discredit the PKK, armed actions are often carried out in Turkish Kurdistan, to which this party has nothing to do.

Igor Petrakov explains some positive changes in the policy of the Turkish leadership on the Kurdish issue by Turkey's desire to join the EU. He stressed that there is no serious legislative framework for a radical solution of the Kurdish issue.

G. I. Starchenkov believes that global changes can contribute to the adoption of a new course by the Turkish leadership in the Kurdish issue. Barack Obama expressed support for the fight against terrorism, including through military means. The US classifies the PKK as a terrorist organization, but it is financed by large Kurdish entrepreneurs. In the fight against the autonomists, the authorities actively use the disunity of the Kurds in language and religion, trying to play on contradictions. At the same time, the prospects for creating a unified Kurdish state are very slim, as is the solution of the Kurdish issue.

Alexander Areshev noted that Turkey is an important trade and economic partner for Russia. In this regard, it is inappropriate to talk about Russia's political influence on Kurdistan. Russia's relations with the Kurds can only develop at the cultural, trade and economic level. One should not get ahead of oneself in the assessment of Turkish-Armenian relations and it is too early to talk about opening borders; one can only build various scenarios for the development of these relations and their impact on the Kurdish issue.

Irina Svistunova noted the novelty of the events taking place in Turkey: The EAP in Parliament openly and sharply criticizes the authorities for military operations in Turkish Kurdistan, for repression of Kurds for political reasons, and for the lack of development of Kurdish areas. This party influences the formation of public opinion. The speaker also believes that the importance of the meeting between B. Obama and A. Turk should not be overestimated. Although the Turkish military has expressed its support for softening the government's course on the Kurdish issue, the top level of national identity in Turkey is the Turkish nation. The Chief of the General Staff of Turkey commented on the phrase K. Ata-

Turk that Turkey is a nation-state in which there are no ethnic differences. And the Kurdish issue, apparently, will be resolved within the framework of this concept.

According to B. M. Potskveria, the authorities in Turkey are unlikely to make changes to the constitution for the sake of the Kurds, who they qualify as "mountain Turks".

Ivanov said that the Russian Federation prefers interstate relations with Turkey, considering the Kurdish issue as its internal problem. The Russian Federation is not involved in the solution of the Kurdish issue, but also does not go along with Turkey. At the same time, the Russian Federation does not yet include the PKK in the list of terrorist organizations.

At the end of the meeting, a controversy broke out on some issues. Thus, an alternative opinion was expressed that Iraqi Kurdistan allegedly exerts ideological and political influence on Turkish Kurdistan. Some believe that this influence is insignificant due to the linguistic differences between Turkish and Iraqi Kurds.

Summing up the meeting, O. I. Zhigalina noted that the severity of the Kurdish issue in Turkey is uneven on the territory of Turkish Kurdistan: it remains relevant in areas of weak socio-economic development and is not among the primary problems in economically developed areas. The PKK, with the help of its international body, the National Congress of Kurdistan, which has its headquarters in Brussels, is creating a network of political organizations in ethnic Kurdistan in order to spread the concept of A. Ocalan and unite forces to fight for a confederate Kurdistan. As for the Russian Federation, it will face certain difficulties in the region in establishing cultural, trade and economic contacts with the Kurds.

The meeting was also attended by V. Ya. Belokrenitsky, M. S. Lazarev, N. M. Kochoi and S. F. Shamoi (representatives of the Foundation for the Development of Kurdish Culture), E. L. Zhigun (Director of the Institute of the Middle East), M. Ch. Osmanov (Chairman of the Council of the Kurdish National Cultural Autonomy of Moscow), E. R. Bayramov (Embassy of the Russian Federation Azerbaijan).

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