Iranian ambitions in the Persian Gulf and rivalries with Arab neighbours are subject to intense - and heated - speculation, controversy and debate. Here, Farzad Cyrus Sharifi scrutinises the rival Arab-Iranian claims to Bahrain, the Shatt al-Arab waterway, and the Abu Musa and Tunbs islands in the years after World War II and before the Iranian revolution. Through investigation of previously unexamined primary materials and interviews with leading players, this book sheds new light on the evolution and dynamics of hegemonic and nationalistic Arab-Iranian rivalries and how these rivalries began to find symbolic expression through territorial disputes. Sharifi illustrates that these ongoing disputes - and the deep-seated tensions still prevalent in Arab-Iranian relations - are largely rooted in how they were constructed in the post-World War II period, making this book vital reading for researchers of the politics, history, international relations and diplomacy of the Middle East.
"I.B.Tauris in association with the Iran Heritage Foundation From the Sasanian to the Safavid Empire, and from Qajar Iran to the current Islamic Republic, the history of Iran is one which has been coloured by a rich tradition of myths and narratives and shaped by its wealth of philosophers, cultural theorists and political thinkers. Perceptions of Iran dissects the construction of Iranian identity, to reveal how nationalism has been continually re-formulated and how Iran's self-perception has been moulded by its literary past. Here, Ali M. Ansari gathers together a varied and wide-ranging account of the long history of Iranian encounters with the Western world, whether via the observations of Herodotus, or the knowledge - via the Old Testament - of Cyrus liberating the Jews from Babylon, or into the modern era when nineteenth and twentieth century interactions reflect the unequal power relationship between Iran and the West. Perceptions of Iran also explores the salient elements in the country's narrative which helped to form Iran's identity, such as Ferdowsi's creation of the Shahnameh - the national epic - the exquisite architecture of Safavid Isfahan or the unfulfilled promise of the Constitutional Movement in the early twentieth century. It offers analysis of the Qajar Shahs' use of a mythical and dynastic past, as they drew on the narratives of Jamshid's glory and Khusraw's splendour in order to legitimise their rule. At the same time, it examines the ways in which foreign travellers and diplomats understood and conceived of the royal courts of Safavid Persia. As it covers 2,500 years of political and intellectual history, Perceptions of Iran ties together the diverse threads of Iranian experience that have underpinned the country's social and cultural movements, spanning Mirza Agha Khan Kermani's writing on Persian history and liberal nationalism, through to the strident anti- Western discourses of Seyyed Jamal al-Afghani, Jalal Al-e Ahmad and Ayatollah Khomeini. The book is therefore vital for researchers of Iranian history and those interested in the use of myth in the construction of national identity more widely."--Bloomsbury publishing.
With ongoing international dependence on the Gulf region for oil supplies, information about the roots of the bitter rivalry between Iran and Saudi Arabia has become increasingly important. This book examines the attitude of the Islamic Republic of Iran towards the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from the early days of Iran's Islamic Revolution of 1979-80 until the Second Gulf War and its aftermath in the 1990s.
This book surveys how Saudi-Iranian relations have unfolded in the Persian Gulf, Iraq, Lebanon, and Palestine since 2003, identifying the sources of rivalry and cooperation between the two powers. Understanding and leveraging this relationship will be a critical part of U.S. efforts to promote stability after the drawdown of U.S. forces in Iraq and to manage the regional impact of Iran's nuclear ambitions.
The Strategic Studies Institute is pleased to offer this monograph as a contribution to the national security debate on this important subject, as our nation continues to grapple with a variety of problems associated with the future of the Middle East and the ongoing challenge of advancing U.S. interests in a time of Middle East turbulence.
Saudi Arabia and Iran have often behaved as serious rivals for influence in the Middle East and especially the Gulf area since at least Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution and the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War. While both nations define themselves as Islamic, the differences between their foreign policies could hardly be more dramatic. In most respects, Saudi Arabia is a regional status quo power, while Iran often seeks revolutionary change throughout the Gulf area and the wider Middle East with varying degrees of intensity. Saudi Arabia also has strong ties with Western nations, while Iran views the United States as its most dangerous enemy. Perhaps the most important difference between the two nations is that Saudi Arabia is a conservative Sunni Muslim Arab state, while Iran is a Shi'ite state whose senior politicians often view their country as the defender and natural leader of Shi'ites throughout the region. The rivalry between Riyadh and Tehran has been reflected in the politics of a number of regional states where these two powers exercise influence including Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Bahrain and others.The 2011 wave of pro-democracy and anti-regime protests known as the "Arab Spring" introduced new concerns for both Saudi Arabia and Iran to consider within the framework of their regional priorities. The Saudi-Iranian rivalry is therefore likely to intensify as a central feature in the Middle Eastern security landscape that reaches into both the Gulf region and the Arab-Israeli theater. This is a reality that will touch upon the interests of the United States in a number of situations. In many instances, Saudi opposition to Iran will serve U.S. interests, but this will not occur under all circumstances. Saudi Arabia remains a deeply anti-revolutionary state with values and priorities which sometimes overlap with those of Washington on matters of strategic interest and often conflict over matters of reform and democracy for other Middle Eastern states. Additionally, in seeking to support Middle Eastern stability, the United States must be prepared to mediate between Riyadh and Baghdad, and thereby help to limit Iranian efforts to insert itself into Iraqi politics.
In the wake of the 1979 Iranian revolution, relations between states in the Middle East were reconfigured and reassessed overnight. Amongst the most-affected was the relationship between Iran and Saudi Arabia. The existence of a new regime in Tehran led to increasingly vitriolic confrontations between these two states, often manifesting themselves in the conflicts across the region, such as those in Lebanon and Iraq, and more recently in Bahrain and Syria. In this new and revised second edition, Simon Mabon examines the different identity groups within Saudi Arabia and Iran (made up of various religions, ethnicities and tribal groupings), proposing that internal insecurity has an enormous impact on the wider ideological and geopolitical competition between the two. With analysis of this heated and often uneasy relationship and its impact on the wider Middle East, this book is vital for those researching international relations and diplomacy in the region.
GCC-Iran relations are at the heart of important political dynamics in the Middle East today. This is not limited to the ongoing disputes in the Gulf, one of the most important strategic locations globally. Iran and the GCC states also find themselves on opposing sides in the Syrian and to some extent the Iraqi conflicts. This volume traces the origins of the troubled relations between Iran and the majority of the GCC monarchies. It discusses not only geostrategic rivalries, but also matters of identity which have been of increased importance since 2010. While important differences are noticeable among the GCC monarchies in regard to their willingness to engage Iran, the difficult relationship between Saudi Arabia and Iran puts a strain on the possibilities for engagement between Iran and the GCC as a whole.
In the wake of the 1979 Iranian revolution, relations between states in the Middle East were reconfigured and reassessed overnight. Amongst the most-affected was the relationship between Iran and Saudi Arabia. The existence of a new regime in Tehran led to increasingly vitriolic confrontations between these two states, often manifesting themselves in the conflicts across the region, such as those in Lebanon and Iraq, and more recently in Bahrain and Syria. In order to shed light upon this rivalry, Simon Mabon examines the different identity groups within Saudi Arabia and Iran (made up of various religions, ethnicities and tribal groupings), proposing that internal insecurity has an enormous impact on the wider ideological and geopolitical competition between the two. With analysis of this heated and often uneasy relationship and its impact on the wider Middle East, this book is vital for those researching international relations and diplomacy in the region.
