Professional Documents
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Iran-Saudi Arabia
Tension Between
Conflict of National
Interests and Sectarian
Polarization
Pınar Arıkan
T
he chain of events future was whether the tension
that has started with between Saudi Arabia and Iran
the execution of after the execution of al-Nimr
Shi’ite scholar Sheikh Nimr would deepen the regional
al-Nimr’s death sentence by sectarian polarization, which
Saudi Arabia on 2 January had appeared within the con-
2016 together with 46 people text of civil wars and conflicts
and continued with setting in the region. This short essay
the Saudi Arabia’s Consulate tries to answer these questions
in Mashhad and Embassy in following a brief discussion of
Tehran on fire by the demon- the course of relations between
strators in protest of the exe- Iran and Saudi Arabia until to-
cution that led Saudi Arabia day.
to cut its diplomatic relations Iran and Saudi Arabia are
with Iran created a tremen- certainly two rival states of the
dous impact on world public Middle East region. Beyond
opinion as ‘Iran-Saudi Arabia current conjuncture, there are
tension.’ The reasons of this two definitive factors in the ri-
tension between the two re- valry between Iran and Saudi
gional powers, Iran and Saudi Arabia. These are geopolit-
Arabia, who are considerably ical and ideological factors.
different from each other re- Geopolitical rivalry between
garding the regional politics of Iran and Saudi Arabia has been
the Middle East both in terms an issue since Great Britain’s
their existence and interests, proclamation of withdrawal
have been the most mentioned decision from Persian Gulf in
and discussed issue of the past 1968. After 1971 when the
few days. The most frequently British army had withdrawn
asked question to understand from the Gulf region, Iran
the reasons beneath the ten- assumed role of ‘Gulf ’s po-
sion between the two states was lice’ and both Iran and Saudi
whether it was rooted in con- Arabia became the two pillars
flict of interests or in polariza- of the US twin pillar policy
tions of sectarian differences. as guarantors of the US inter-
In this vein, another question ests in the region. However,
asked rather anxiously for the when the Arab states placed
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of all the Shiites of the world exemplary model for all the
nor Saudi Arabia was regard- Islamic countries. Although
ed to be the representative of Islamic Republic of Iran is a
all the Sunnis. However, the theocratic republic whose offi-
nation-state dress that the cial sect is Ithna ‘Ashariyya, it
two states cut out for them- has developed a holistic rath-
selves takes understanding of er than sectarian approach to
the sect as a reference point; religion. Accordingly, there is
hence, constitute a basis for one Islamic world and Iran
definition of their nation- has been a part of it. The con-
al interests on the sectarian stitution of the Iran portrays
grounds. The elements of the the aim of the revolutionary
rivalry between Iranian and government to form a mod-
Saudi Arabian state ideologies el of Islamic democracy that
will be mentioned below. will be an example for the
The Islamic Republic, Islamic world. The Islamic so-
which was established in 1979 cieties, which will take Islamic
by terminating the Pahlavi Republic of Iran as a model,
monarchy that had been the will terminate the un-Islamic
closest ally of the US govern- governments in their coun-
ment in the region, aimed at tries. This ideal, which was re-
presenting a free and indepen- ferred as ‘export of revolution,’
dent Islamic government as an was one of the aims of the
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the past from the hostile atti- ing support to Salafi and takfi-
tude of Iran towards monar- ri groups since the beginning
chies struggle for the preserva- of Arab uprisings.
tion of their authorities today Another point that has be-
against actual or potential in- come evident in the last cri-
fluence of Iran on the Shi’ite sis is Saudi Arabia’s concerns
minorities in their countries. regarding the end of Iran’s
Arab kingdoms, which ac- alienation and isolation in the
cuse Iran with interference in international system after the
their internal affairs, criticize nuclear deal. This will clearly
Iran on the basis of the most
bring the result of Iran’s ac-
fundamental principle of the
ceptance to international plat-
nation-state order, that is,
forms as one of the actors sit-
non-interference in internal
ting around the table, and will
affairs of sovereign states and
increase Iranian strategic pow-
respect for territorial integri-
er. Saudi Arabia, together with
ty. The Arab uprisings, which
its allies, wants to alienate Iran
brought into view the public
in the region. The incidents
space where Shi’ite minorities
after the execution of Sheikh
in the Arab states express the
Nimr al-Nimr created an op-
discrimination for the exercise
portunity for Saudi Arabia in
of their political and human
this regard.
rights by the state authorities,
paved the way for this attitude In conclusion, Iran-Saudi
against Iran. Although exten- Arabia tension does not stem
sive Iranian presence in any from the different sectarian
state apart from Syria has been basis of their governments,
an unverified claim, the ongo- but from different geopolit-
ing chaos in the region creates ical and ideological interests
a favorable environment for of the two states. In the pres-
the two states with different ence of the threat posed by
geopolitical and ideologi- ISIS terrorist organization in
cal interests, Iran and Saudi the region, which constitutes
Arabia, to accuse each other. a security threat not only for
As a matter of fact, Iran also Iran and Saudi Arabia but also
accuses Saudi Arabia with giv- for other regional states and
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