ABSTRACT
T HIS CHAPTER will focus primarily on developments in the 1990s con-cerning the Kurdish question in Turkey. However, the trans-state nature of this particular ethnic conflict should be borne in mind. Events in Turkey with regard to the Kurds cannot be totally divorced from activities elsewhere in the region. In particular, the ever-changing situation in northern Iraq has had an important influence. The regional dimension ofthe Kurdish question will be analysed separately later. One should note that the socio-economic problems, the escalatingviolence in south-easternhatolia and the increasing scale of migration within and out of the area have been adversely affected by developments in Iraq especially. The trans-state nature of the Kurdish question has had significant repercussions on politics in Turkey. HowWestern governments have perceived and reacted to policies adopted by the authorities inhkarawith regard to the Kurdish question in the country and in the region in general, and how Turhsh officials in turn have responded to these reactions will also be examined in more detail later.
