In The Shadows Of Iraq: Qubad Talabani (Part 9)

I conclude the interview by asking a bit more of a long-term, theoretical question. What I am attempting to reflect on here is the potential of Kurdistan becoming a regional influence for economic development. The Middle East, with Dubai in particular, has been growing rather significantly in global importance. Tourism is increasing, there are obvious potentials to energy, and there is significant human intellect there which has not been fully recognized or tapped.

So the question now is, since the Kurdish area has had a 10-year head start on the rest of Iraq economically, is it the future leader of the country? As bleak as the situation there looks now, there is the potential that a decade from now it may be poised for rapid economic growth. Of course, there is the potential the situation will degenerate further, at which point you wonder if the Kurdish region will move on to become a regional icon while the remainder of Iraq remains behind.

Drawing parallels with India, for example, it was Bangalore that led the technology-led boom, while much of the rest of India remained in relative darkness, and still does.

SM: What role or vision do you see the Kurdish area holding in the overall stability in Iraq, especially in terms of economic development? QT: It seems right now to be the most advanced region in the country. Kurdistan is the gateway of Iraq. We strongly believe that domestic and foreign companies can use Kurdistan as a base of operations, and when the rest of the country is stabilized they can branch out to other areas of the country.

Kurdistan’s success is also an inspiration of hope for other citizens of Iraq, they look to us as a model, and we have been proudly serving as that model. Remember, Kurdistan was all but destroyed when we started administering it in 1992. Since then the boom has been amazing, even though we went through our own troubles in the mid nineties. It wasn’t too long ago that there was internal fighting between various Kurdish groups in Kurdistan. Thankfully those days are behind us and we are looking forward to continued political and economic growth.

[Part 8]
[Part 7]
[Part 6]
[Part 5]
[Part 4]
[Part 3]
[Part 2]
[Part 1]

This segment is part 9 in the series : In The Shadows Of Iraq: Qubad Talabani
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