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Journals / Coğrafi Bilimler Dergisi / 2026 / Cilt: 24 Sayı: 1

Discourse, Space, and the Politics of Legitimacy: A Critical Geopolitical Analysis of the 2003 Iraq War

Söylem, Mekân, Meşruiyet: 2003 Irak Savaşı’nın Eleştirel Jeopolitik Analizi

Elif Bayrakcı Gün(İSTANBUL ÜNİVERSİTESİ)0009-0000-5195-5075
Pages
357–385
Publication Date
2026-04-30
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AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

The study argues that geopolitical discourse not only represents the world but also constructs decision spaces and spatial outcomes.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

🎯
Objective & Hypothesis:This article examines the discourses that constructed the legitimacy of the 2003 Iraq War within the frameworks of critical geopolitics and critical geography.
📊
Key Findings & Data:Materials from 2002–2005 including speeches, intelligence reports (NIE, Senate Report), UK inquiries (Butler, Chilcot), and visual representations (satellite images, target maps) were coded.
💡
Conclusion & Impact:The study argues that geopolitical discourse not only represents the world but also constructs decision spaces and spatial outcomes.
🔬Design:Araştırma Makalesi
📍Scope:2003 Verileri
⚙️Variables:Eleştirel Jeopolitik · Eleştirel Coğrafya · Tematik Söylem Analizi

Abstract

This article examines the discourses that constructed the legitimacy of the 2003 Iraq War within the frameworks of critical geopolitics and critical geography. Speeches by George W. Bush, Tony Blair, and institutional documents were analyzed using thematic discourse analysis (Braun & Clarke). Materials from 2002–2005 including speeches, intelligence reports (NIE, Senate Report), UK inquiries (Butler, Chilcot), and visual representations (satellite images, target maps) were coded. Findings show that the “urgency, certainty,technification” triad framed the preventive war as a technical necessity; “scale shifting” produced a sense of inevitability; and the “chain of institutional confirmation” reinforced legitimacy, which later unraveled through postwar silences and retrospective distancing. The narratives of WMDs and Iraq–Al Qaeda links did not sustain empirically, while democracy discourse generated fragmented sovereignty within security architectures such as the Green Zone and checkpoints. The study argues that geopolitical discourse not only represents the world but also constructs decision spaces and spatial outcomes.

Özet

Bu makale, 2003 Irak Savaşı’nın meşruiyetini kuran söylemleri eleştirel jeopolitik ve coğrafya çerçevesinde inceler. George W. Bush, Tony Blair ve dönemin kurumsal belgeleri tematik söylem analiziyle (Braun & Clarke) değerlendirilmiştir. 2002–2005 arasındaki konuşmalar, istihbarat raporları (NIE, Senato Raporu), İngiltere soruşturmaları (Butler, Chilcot) ve görselleştirmeler (uydu görüntüleri, hedef haritaları) kodlanmıştır. Bulgular, “aciliyet–kesinlik–teknikleşme” üçlemesinin önleyici savaşı teknik bir zorunluluk gibi sunduğunu; “ölçek kaydırma”nın alternatifsizlik hissi ürettiğini; “kurumsal teyit zinciri”nin meşruiyeti pekiştirdiğini, ancak savaş sonrası sessizliklerin çözülmesiyle bu meşruiyetin sarsıldığını göstermektedir. Kitle imha silahları ve Irak–El Kaide bağlantısı söylemleri kalıcılaşmazken, demokrasi söylemi güvenlik mimarileri içinde parçalı egemenlik üretmiştir. Çalışma, jeopolitik söylemin yalnızca dünyayı temsil etmediğini, aynı zamanda karar ve mekân üretim süreçlerini şekillendirdiğini vurgular

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Cite This Article

Gün, E. B. (2026). Discourse, Space, and the Politics of Legitimacy: A Critical Geopolitical Analysis of the 2003 Iraq War. Coğrafi Bilimler Dergisi, Cilt: 24 Sayı: 1, 357–385. https://doi.org/10.33688/aucbd.1825059

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