"Analyzing Iraqi Border Conflicts Based on Peter Haggett's Model"

Abstract

This study offers a historical-analytical examination of Iraqi border conflicts within the field of Modern Iraqi History, employing Peter Haggett’s spatial framework to interpret the geopolitical and functional evolution of Iraq’s boundaries. It argues that Iraqi borders did not emerge from an organic social or historical process but were constructed through post-World War I imperial cartography that defined the spatial architecture of the modern Iraqi state. By tracing key historical milestones — including border treaties, pan-Arab projects, the Iran–Iraq War, the 1990–1991 Gulf crisis, and post-2003 transformations — the research reveals how issues of security, energy networks, and regional mobility intersected with Iraqi state-building and elite perceptions of sovereignty.

The study demonstrates that Iraqi borders functioned less as fixed territorial lines and more as dynamic geographic fields whose function shifted according to state capacity, strategic connectivity, and regional power balances. Periods of boundary stability aligned with Iraq’s ability to command maritime and land gateways, while episodes of instability corresponded to weakened state authority and intensified external intervention. This research contributes to the historiography of modern Iraq by integrating spatial theory with political history, suggesting new avenues for studying sovereignty, territoriality, and regional integration in the context of emerging logistics and energy networks in the Middle East.