The end of World War I and the confrontation with the collapse of the Ottoman Empire not only altered the map of Asia Minor, but also laid the foundation for an ongoing security crisis that continues to this day. On one hand, the return of the people of Israel and the establishment of their state within the international system, and on the other, the rejection of the stability of this reality by nationalist and Islamic currents originating from the remnants of the Ottoman and Safavid empires, thrust the region into a continuous cycle of conflict. While the post-1960s security architecture sought solutions through international resolutions, the opposing front (both totalitarian Arab regimes and centralized rule in Ankara and Tehran) consistently chose the geopolitical erasure of Israel as its primary strategy.

At the heart of this complex equation, the security environment of the Middle East points to an unalterable truth: no lasting peace for Israel and no long-term interests for the Western alliance (the US and Europe) can be achieved without the emergence of an independent and strong Kurdish entity.

In contemporary military and security theories, "strategic depth" is not measured solely by land area; rather, it consists of the presence of a sustained ground alliance, ideological stability, and the ability to exercise field control. In the recent confrontations and tensions between Iran and the US-Israel alliance, a crucial military reality was proven: airpower alone cannot bring totalitarian and centralized regimes to their knees.

Advanced aerial and missile technology can disrupt an adversary's decision-making and military infrastructure, but it lacks the capacity to alter the balance of power on the ground (boots on the ground). At this juncture, the Kurdish nation and its struggling forces emerge as the sole secular ground actor that upholds democratic values and holds geopolitical control in the region. The Kurds not only possess popular legitimacy, but also organized will to resist oppressive regimes. The line of thought among Western strategists to ignore this force has been a historical mistake, the cost of which is the continuous seeking of shelter by Israeli citizens and the perpetual instability of American interests.

The post-Soviet era and the transition toward a multipolar system have pushed global power competition to its peak. In this framework, the rise of China as a major economic and military rival to the West has doubled the imperative for the US and Europe to protect economic corridors and energy security. The Middle East, with its population of over 300 million, forms the core axis of this global struggle.

At the center and apex of this new engineering, divided Kurdistan (across Syria, Iran, Iraq, and Turkey) holds an indispensable position:

• Natural Resources and Minerals: Kurdistan possesses vast reserves of oil and gas, while also being rich in deposits of precious metals and rare earth elements—the bedrock of modern technology, the semiconductor industry, and complex electronic devices.
• Food and Water Security: The fertile soil and rich water resources of Kurdistan will, in an era of climate change, inevitably become an essential part of the region's national security equation.
• Secular Demographics: In a region dominated by religious extremism and radical nationalism, Kurdish society has remained a secular island aligned with Western values and principles of freedom and human rights.

The short-sighted vision of maintaining the status quo by relying on large centralized states like Iran and Turkey has not led to stability; instead, it has further complicated the equation. By suppressing their domestic ethnic communities, these states have a constant need to create external enemies (headed by Israel and the West) to legitimize their own totalitarian rule.

Eliminating the threat posed by these aggressive entities can only be achieved through power decentralization, the unbinding of the center, and guaranteeing the right to self-determination for oppressed nations. Until an independent state or a strong, recognized Kurdish entity is established to serve as a buffer zone against the imperialist agendas of Ankara and Tehran, no security guarantee can be constructed for Israel or the national security of European nations and the United States.

It is time for Washington and European capitals to redefine the core of their long-term doctrine in the Middle East. Formally recognizing the right of the Kurdish nation to self-determination and relying on the Kurds as full geopolitical and military partners is not merely a moral choice—it is an absolute security and strategic necessity to maintain the global balance of power, sever the reach of totalitarian regimes, and guarantee lasting peace for Israel and the entire region.