Following the opening of the headquarters of the Confederation of Kurdish Community Federations in the European Union in the Belgian capital, Brussels, Kurdish associations and organizations across Europe have continue to unify their efforts and organize under the new umbrella. The confederation aims to strengthen cultural, social, and economic ties among nearly three million Kurdish migrants living in EU member states. However, observers indicate that the new union seeks to form a political pressure group to support the Kurdish issue in various Middle Eastern countries.

Following the inauguration of the headquarters, Masoud Barzani, leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and a prominent Kurdish political figure based in Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan Region, received a delegation from the Union of the Kurdistan Community Abroad. The delegation included Kurdish political, academic, cultural, and economic figures residing in European countries. According to a statement issued by Barzani’s office after the meeting emphasized that 'the Kurdish national issue takes precedence over all considerations, and the attention to the Kurdish community abroad is aligned with this strategy.'

Kurds celebrating Kurdish Flag Day in the city of Qamishli. (AFP)

Havind Mamo, a prominent researcher and activist in the Kurdish community in Germany, spoke to Annahar that recent developments have driven Kurdish associations and organizations in this centralized hierarchical manner. He said, 'Referring to Germany’s annual report on racism, Mamo said the findings clearly show that Kurds are among the most exposed ethnic groups to complex and overlapping forms of discrimination in Germany, particularly from members of other Middle Eastern diaspora communities. He noted that such incidents are often politically motivated, adding that Kurds themselves do not engage in comparable forms of racism against members of those same communities.'
Mamo added that 'this is because Kurds are the world’s only major ethnic group without a sovereign state to represent their interests or defend their rights abroad, especially as a collective community with its own culture, causes, and public occasions.'
'For this reason,' he explained, 'the new umbrella organization is intended to function as a broad mutual-support institution that views Kurds as a single civil community that advocate for what it considers legitimate Kurdish causes and to defend their right to cultural, intellectual, and artistic representation, while maintaining positive cooperation with federations representing other ethnic and civic communities across Europe.'
According to initial plans, the confederation seeks to bring together 21 Kurdish federations from across Europe, with a particular focus on six countries hosting large Kurdish populations: Germany, France, Sweden, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Denmark. It also plans to open more than 40 centers in these countries, primarily for cultural and social activities, and aims within two years to support the establishment of more than 100 Kurdish centers and associations worldwide.
Observers, however, note that Kurdish cultural and social organizations in Europe broadly fall into two categories: those politically or symbolically aligned with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), and others closer to the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP). In response, Amina Zakari, a member of the KDP’s political bureau, rejected claims that her party’s support for civil confederations seeks to steer their discourse or activities in favor of any single political group. Speaking to local media, she said the primary objective is to strengthen ties between these organizations and the Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq, which she said provides comprehensive backing for the initiative.
A few weeks ago, Kurdish communities abroad announced the implementation of an extensive program for teaching the Kurdish language to all children of the Kurdish community abroad, in cooperation with the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Ministry of Education. These civil groups have additionally worked to support Kurdish candidates in local elections across several European countries.