Jan 04, 2018 saudi arabia and iran s rivalry is key to the middle east in 2018 regional chaos is set to continue with no solution in sight to yemen crisis and power struggle over shape of postwar syria kareem. Jan 06, 2016 one map that explains the dangerous saudi iranian conflict. Pdf conflicts between iran and the gulf arab states. The russians have intervened on the same sideon the side of the assad government, which is also irans client. One workshop participant explained that the principal sources of. In the past 15 years in particular, the differences between saudi arabia and iran have been sharpened by a series of events. Behind the iransaudi arabia conflict liberation news. Confrontation between the united states and iran global.
The primary concern of this research was to explore the effect of the conflict between saudi arabia and iran in. Saudi arabia, a majority sunni muslim country and iran, a majority shia muslim country, have been in major geopolitical conflict which has intensified since the iranian revolution in 2011 and irans support for syria during the syrian civil war. One major area in which iran s policy has remained excessively uncompromising has been the inherent hostility to israel, rejection of. Our ideology rejects monarchy and alliance with the nonmuslim governmentsnations that are oppressive or impose their will, policies or culture on usmuslims. Saudi arabiairan conflict will crush oil prices further. Conflict does a lot of psychological and moral damage also. Managing the saudiiran rivalry council on foreign relations. This paper argues that conflict between saudi arabia and iran does reflect their divergent religious beliefs, but above all, it is a case of converging power struggles and strategic geopolitical interests. The enmity between iran and saudi arabia is a persistent feature of middle eastern geopolitics. Pdf what is really behind the saudiiranian cold war. Bard october 2011 vi preface john adams, argument in defense of the soldiers in boston massacre trial, december 1770. The iran saudi arabia proxy conflict, sometimes also referred to as the middle eastern cold war is the ongoing struggle for influence in the middle east and surrounding regions between the islamic republic of iran and the kingdom of saudi arabia. As a result, saudi arabia severed diplomatic ties with iran.
Nov 20, 2016 the conflicts toll exhausted irans zeal for sowing revolution abroad, but gave it a new mission. The rupture has its roots in a strategic rivalry that stretches across the middle east, says bernard haykel, middle east expert at princeton university. The cold war between saudi arabia and iran thats tearing apart the middle east, explained the supposedly ancient sunnishia divide is in fact very modern and its not really about religion. Iran and the united states have had many formal diplomatic relations since 1980. Whats behind the feud between saudi arabia and iran. However, in terms of the number of participants, the. Although ideology has played a role, their respective regional strategic interests have largely shaped their relationship. Republic of iran has been driven by the existence of a security dilemma. Iran and saudi arabias great rivalry explained bbc news. It attempts to use the concept of security dilemma to explain the current saudiiranian relations. Members of iran s islamic revolutionary guard corp irgc march during a military parade to commemorate the 198088 iran iraq war in tehran, iran on september 22, 2007. Cnni talks to robert danin of the council on foreign relations about the wider implications of the escalating rift between saudi arabia and iran.
Usiran conflict explained mains article iastoppers. Gradually, however, the new regime was forced to adapt its dogma to reality, and became increasingly pragmatic. The tensions between saudi arabia and iran go back many. Pakistan serves as iran s protecting power in the united states, while switzerland serves as the united states protecting power in iran. A security dilemma exists in the two states relations as both of them are seeking policies of increasing their relative gains in order to make them secure.
Jan 28, 2016 so iran andiran and russiairan and saudi arabia are competing, say, on syria. Explaining the longterm hostility between the united states and iran. The organization of islamic cooperation oicwhich represents the entirety of the muslim worldhas traditionally observed a strict policy of neutrality, preferring to resort to closeddoor diplomacy regarding disagreements among its member states. How can the growing regional rivalry between iran and saudi arabia and their. To understand the current conflict, it is important to understand that the history of the middle east is not one of widespread and perpetual wars and conflicts between the two sects. King saud visits iran, and the shah reciprocates two. In response, iranian protesters stormed the saudi embassy in tehran, and saudi arabia has cut off diplomatic relations with its rival across the persian gulf. The security dilemma in saudiiranian relations mohamed bin. The move prompts protests or condemnation from shiites in iran, iraq, bahrain, turkey, pakistan, india, lebanon, and yemen. They are the best weapons we have to insure that truth triumphs over fiction. Saudi arabia and the regionalization of yemens conflict. The enmity between iran and saudi arabia exploded last weekend, after the saudi execution of a prominent shia cleric along with dozens of other citizens accused of terrorism. Cyber warfare is an increasingly prominent aspect of the iraniansaudi hegemonic rivalry in the middle east.
In a number of respects, the current internal conflict in iran should be the source of much concern to the leaders of the islamic regime. After the death of the prophet muhammad, his followers split. They are bitter rivals, whose feud goes back almost 40 years. The next one is about the take place on january 25. Saudi arabia and iran s rivalry is key to the middle east in 2018 regional chaos is set to continue with no solution in sight to yemen crisis and power struggle over shape of post war. Iran tensions are the 2018 trump administration withdrawal from the 2015. The conflict is between saudi arabia, representing sunni islam via wahhabism, and iran, representing shiite islam through khomeinism. View saudi arabia and iran conflict a realistic view emelyn peralta 106862028. Saudi arabia and iran are not only competing for power because of their sectarian differences. The escalating proxy war between the majoritysunni muslim kingdom of saudi arabia and iran, the home of shiite islam, is having repercussions across the.
The islamic revolution in iran led to a dramatic change in the countrys foreign policy outlook and in its involvement in the international arena. Tensions between saudi arabia and iran council on foreign. The patchwork of control that predominated for the first part of the conflict now has consolidated to three zones. Us iran relations iranian issue and conflict explained. The escalating proxy war between the majoritysunni muslim kingdom of saudi arabia and iran, the home of shiite islam, is having repercussions across the middle east.
They are ratcheting up the war between them in their secondary arenas of conflict, namely syria, lebanon, and yemen. One map that explains the dangerous saudiiranian conflict. Saudiiranian tensions economic effects and political. Relations between the two countries were relatively close until the 1979 revolution. Nov 10, 2017 the united states military says the missile targeting the saudis has iranian markings. The ongoing conflict, widely seen as a proxy war between saudi arabia and iran, could become even more volatile in the wake of a missile fired at riyadh earlier this week. Iran has a large population and a long history of nationhood, while saudi arabia holds significant oil reserves and is custodian of islams holiest sites. Saudi arabia remains publicly neutral, but reportedly makes three of its. This paper is also downloadable in pdf format from the bottom of the page. The saudis exit the conflict with israel the crown princes recognition of jewish rights is a direct signal to the palestinians and iran, not israel. It spoils the mental peace of man which can result in stress related illness. Jan 04, 2016 but note that, at first, this conflict had nothing to do with the sunnishia divide, and in fact it was a conflict in which both iran and saudi arabia saw themselves as representing all muslims. A brief breakdown of the current saudi vs iran conflict.
Theniranian president khatami met saleh by this point, president of a unified yemen in 2003, and managed to reach an accord, which later deteriorated after the beginning of the houthi insurgency in 2004. It has many levels but at its root it is our ideology contra their realpolitik. Saudi arabia and iran s ongoing battle for power and influence rages on in the middle east but analysts arent convinced that an allout war will happen, yet. The breach in diplomatic relations between iran and saudi arabia is a dangerous watershed in an already unstable, wartorn region.
The two countries have provided varying degrees of support to opposing sides in nearby conflicts, including the civil wars in syria, yemen, and iraq. In relation to the iransaudi arabia conflict, however, the oic openly backed riyadh, which deepened intersectarian rifts within the oic. Regional impact of saudiiranian conflict cnn video. Contacts are carried out through the iranian interests section of the pakistani embassy in washington, d. The rivalry explained the enmity between iran and saudi arabia is a persistent feature of middle eastern geopolitics. Now we can calculate the payoffs of sanction and war for the us separately as shown below. A view from iran on heightened conflict with saudi arabia. Its rivalry with saudi arabia would have been fairly unspectacular and certainly not a subject for such a book, if not for something unique that occurred in iran during 1979. Introduction for this study the researcher will examine both the iranian and saudi arabian options of being a superior power in the middle east and the conflict this race to the top. Iran and saudi arabia are on opposing sides of a more than 1,000year old argument at the heart of islam between sunnis and shia. Iran, saudi arabia war readiness compared washington times. Saudi arabia, iran and the great game in yemen iran. Nov 21, 2017 iran and saudi arabia on the brink of a proxy war over lebanon. Suppose that the probability of defiance by iran against the us is q.
It began with tentative decisionmaking during the iran iraq war in 1980, but shifted to a more proactive stance as the cold war started to thaw in 1987, when the council adopted a settlement plan, which iraq and iran accepted in 1988, bringing active hostilities to an end. Nov 12, 2017 should escalating tensions between bitter regional rivals iran and saudi arabia break out into open conflict, riyadhs formidable military arsenal would quickly overwhelm iranian forces in a. The breach in diplomatic relations between iran and saudi arabia is a dangerous watershed in an already unstable, war torn region. The security dilemma in saudiiranian relations mohamed. It argues that the relationship between the kingdom of saudi arabia and the islamic. There are many vast and wide implications of a cold war in the middle east and it is central to address how accurate a description this cold war framework is when analyzing the saudi arabian and iranian relationship. Proxy war between iran and saudi arabia intensifies youtube. The gulf cooperation council was created as a response to iran s islamic revolution, which stirred unrest across the middle east, particularly among the regions shiite population. Saudi arabia and iran conflict a realistic view emelyn. For iastoppers mains articles archive, click here introduction.
Jul 17, 2017 but underneath all the conflict, there are two common actors. Dec 20, 2017 the conflict between iran and saudi arabia is fueling some of the regions most intractable conflicts. Introduction as halliday 2005 well said, the task of. Iran and saudi arabia on the brink of a proxy war over lebanon. This leads, once again, to a ban on iranian pil grims until 1948. Prospect of usiran conflict threatens gulf economies.
Escalation in the conflict between iran and saudi arabia. The usa should make a conjecture about iran playing defiance or war and then on this basis needs to compare the payoffs of the sanction or war. How the iraniansaudi proxy struggle tore apart the middle. Theniranian president khatami met saleh by this point, president of a unified yemen in 2003, and managed to reach an accord, which later deteriorated after the. Demonstrations and riots erupt in iran every few years, protesting primarily intervention by the regime in the life of the individual or the economic situation. The following is a timeline of iran saudi relations since the 1979 revolution. Jan 04, 2016 cnni talks to robert danin of the council on foreign relations about the wider implications of the escalating rift between saudi arabia and iran. Iran and saudi arabia, on the two sides of the sunnishiite fault line, are trying to gain influence in reshaping the middle east. Fulan nasrullah is the executive director of the conflict studies and analysis project at the global initiative for civil stabilisation. Iran has just, through negotiations, gotten so far that it was invited in these major talks that were seeing every couple months on saudi arabia. The yemen card is a strategic bargaining chip that iran may now be holding visavis the sudden rise of the houthis. The iransaudi arabia proxy conflict, sometimes also referred to as the iransaudi arabia cold war, middle east cold war or middle east conflict, is the ongoing struggle for influence in the middle east and surrounding regions between the islamic republic of iran and the kingdom of saudi arabia. Analyzing yemens transition from a fragile to a failed state adds another dimension to understanding yemens conflict that expands beyond the saudi versus iran proxy war narrative.
Assessing the potential impacts of a usiran war on. Dec 23, 2017 the ongoing conflict, widely seen as a proxy war between saudi arabia and iran, could become even more volatile in the wake of a missile fired at riyadh earlier this week. In iran, protestors burn part of the saudi embassy in tehran and storm the compound. The financial times and its journalism are subject to a selfregulation regime under the ft editorial code of practice. Jan 05, 2016 tensions in the middle east typically drive up oil prices but the saudia arabia iran conflict will further depress prices, says stephen myrow. In the first, assads government, bolstered by vital aid from iran and russia, controls most of the country and its key population centers in western syria. The iransaudi arabia conflict and its impact on the. Policy congressional research service 2 since may 2019, the administration has ended five out of the seven waivers under the iran freedom and counterproliferation act ifca, p. The conflict between saudi arabia and iran, while historical and religious in origin, has evolved into a geopolitical competition. Assessment paper first published may 2019 assessing the impacts of a potential us iran war on nigeria note. In this episode, arunank discusses about this issue by explaining the history of the conflict and relations of the two countries and the major reason behind the issue nuclear weapons. Iran, on the other hand, is a majority shiite country, with 810 percent of its 80 million population being sunni. An economic evaluation article pdf available in strategic analysis 364.
Why is there conflict between saudi arabia and iran. Saudi arabias involvement clearly lies in its interest in keeping the yemeni allied government in power for these reasons while iran saw the weak state as an opportunity to gain advantage over saudi arabia in yet another conflict and used its shia ties to the revolutionaries to gain access. War as a form of conflict often destroy the lives and properties of countless individuals. Saudi arabia has made clear that it sees the conflict in yemen as the extension of its struggle with the islamic republic. Nov 10, 2017 the us is deliberately fuelling the conflict between saudi arabia and iran, daily sabah argues. The kingdom of saudi arabia, occupies the majority of the arabian peninsula. Iran and israel steven simon israel and iran have interacted since israels birth in 1948. Iran has a large population and a long history of nationhood, while saudi arabia holds significant oil reserves and is custodian of islams holiest sites before the 1979 iranian revolution, relations between iran and saudi arabia proceeded without major incident. Occasional paper understanding irans role in the syrian.
In the hopes of deconstructing the popular but reductionist sunni vs. The nature of the saudiiranian rivalry has led many middle east experts to identify their rivalry as a new middle east cold war. In spite of us and european assistance, the iranian hegemony has been increasing over the arabian interests in these proxy wars, keeping bashir assad in power, staving off the isis caliphate, and proving arabs impotent to prevail. Nov 22, 2017 if there was a conflict between saudi arabia and iran, however, thaker said it would be the most dangerous times for the middle east and the world. Saudi arabia and the gulf states have been fighting an ongoing proxy war with iran in yemen,iraq, lebanon and syria. Why saudi arabia and iran are bitter rivals bbc news. State failure happens when the basic functions of the state provision of security, infrastructure, the rule of law, etc. Saudi arabia, sudan and bahrain sever diplomatic ties with iran, and the uae downgrades its relations with the islamic republic. Kharg island provides a sea port for the export of oil and extends iranian territorial sea claims into the persian gulf oil fields. How the saudiiran conflict might align with prophecy. Saudiiranian tensions economic effects and political consequences iranian oil workers on kharg island in the persian gulf, february 2016. The chain of events that has started with the execution of shiite scholar sheikh nimr alnimrs death sentence by saudi arabia on january 2, 2016 together with 46 people and continued with setting the saudi arabias consulate in mashhad and embassy.