Turkey spans both Asia and Europe, with a total area of approximately 783,600 square kilometers and a population of about 85.28 million.
The Turkish people are the primary ethnic group, making up 80% of the total population, while the Kurds are the second largest, comprising 15%. Additionally, Turkey is home to several other ethnic groups, including Armenians, Greeks, and Arabs.
In Turkey, the Kurdish population has long exhibited tendencies towards an independence movement.
After World War I, the Kurds nearly achieved independence from Turkey.
Following the establishment of modern Turkey, the Kurds have continued their efforts to create an independent Kurdish state.
So, how has the Kurdish independence movement developed?
First, the Kurds have a long history.
The Kurds are believed to be descendants of the ancient Medes, with a history spanning over two thousand years.
The Kurds mainly reside in the mountainous regions around the Euphrates, Tigris, and Aras Rivers, an area that includes parts of Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria, totaling about 400,000 square kilometers.
The geographical location of the Kurds is highly significant, historically serving as a land route for East-West exchanges, which led to their rule by several great empires, such as the Persian Empire, the Arab Empire, and the Ottoman Empire.
Starting in the 15th century, the Kurds came under the rule of the Ottoman Empire.
Under Ottoman rule, the Kurds enjoyed a certain degree of autonomy, allowing them to retain their principalities but requiring them to submit to the Ottoman Sultan and provide troops during wars.
The Kurds lived under Ottoman rule for several centuries.
After World War I, the defeat of the Ottoman Empire presented the Kurds with an opportunity for independence.
On August 10, 1920, the Allied Powers forced the Ottoman Empire to sign the humiliating Treaty of Sèvres.
This treaty stripped the Ottoman Empire of most of its territory: Syria was given to France, Iraq to Britain, southern Anatolia to Italy, Eastern Thrace and Izmir to Greece, and the Turkish Straits were placed under international control.
Additionally, the Treaty of Sèvres allowed the Kurds in southeastern Turkey to establish an independent state.
The treaty effectively represented the Allied Powers' plan to partition Turkey, leaving only a portion of northern Anatolia to Turkey.
The signing of the treaty led to the collapse of Ottoman rule, and Mustafa Kemal (Atatürk) led the Turks to defeat the predominantly Greek foreign intervention forces, forcing the Allied Powers to abandon the Treaty of Sèvres and sign the Treaty of Lausanne instead.
In 1923, the Treaty of Lausanne was signed, enabling Turkey to retain its Anatolian territory, Eastern Thrace, and the Turkish Straits.
However, Kurdish interests were sacrificed, as the new treaty no longer permitted Kurdish independence.
Without Atatürk's efforts, Turkey might have been partitioned, and the Kurds would have gained independence.
In 1923, modern Turkey was established, and Atatürk became its first president.
Finally, Kurdish resistance has persisted.
After the establishment of modern Turkey, the Kurds' aspiration for independence was not realized, leading them to resist Turkey.
Atatürk deployed military forces to suppress the Kurdish independence movement.
Nevertheless, the Kurdish independence movement has not ceased, and they have continuously sought opportunities.
For example, in 2003, the Kurds in Turkey began to ally with the Kurds in Syria.
The Kurds in both regions share close ties due to their common language and script.
The border between Turkey and Syria is also relatively long. Although Kurds use the same Kurdish language, their scripts vary.
The Kurds in Turkey and Syria use the Latin alphabet, while those in Iran and Iraq use the Arabic script, and the Kurds in the Caucasus region use the Cyrillic script.
Due to the linguistic and scriptural commonality between the Kurds in Turkey and Syria, and the long border between the two countries, the outbreak of the Syrian war in 2011 led to the Syrian Kurds establishing their armed forces.
The Turkish Kurds' attempts to unite with the Syrian Kurds have raised concerns for the Turkish government.
Turkey has repeatedly launched attacks on Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria, aiming to sever the connection between the Kurds in both regions and maintain national territorial integrity.
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