Religion and Geopolitics in Iranian Foreign Policy

Wastnidge, Edward (2018). Religion and Geopolitics in Iranian Foreign Policy. In: Mabon, Simon ed. Saudi Arabia and Iran: The Struggle to Shape the Middle East. The Foreign Policy Centre (FPC Think Tank Ltd), pp. 9–10.

URL: https://fpc.org.uk/religion-and-geopolitics-in-ira...

Abstract

Saudi Arabia and Iran, as key power brokers in the Middle East, continue to couch their bilateral relations in antagonistic terms as they chafe against each other in a battle for influence in the region. Characterising this rivalry in the purely sectarian terms of a deep-rooted Sunni-Shi’a enmity is simplistic and fails to understand the complex geopolitical dynamics at play. However, for the Islamic Republic, Iran’s religious identity as the pre-eminent ‘Shi’a power’ gives it a means of influence and co-optation over its co-religionists. A key element of building such relationships is its transnational religious networks which form the basis of much of its cultural and religious diplomacy work.

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