نوع مقاله : مقاله پژوهشی
نویسنده
استادیار، گروه علوم سیاسی، دانشکدۀ حقوق و علوم سیاسی، واحد چالوس، دانشگاه آزاد اسلامی،چالوس، ایران
چکیده
کلیدواژهها
عنوان مقاله [English]
نویسنده [English]
Introduction: The history of Iran's view of the East can be traced back to the slogan of the Islamic Revolution, "Neither East, Nor West". The idea was not consistent with the dominant pattern of behavior in the international system during the Cold War. After Iran separated from the Western bloc, it did not join the Eastern bloc. After the collapse of the Soviet Union and the beginning of American unilateralism, the arrowhead of the Islamic Republic's confrontational policy was mainly pointed towards the West. Iran did not gain reliable experience in cooperation with the West, and this increased tensions and deepened differences between them. The signing of the JCPOA agreement, which was violated by Trump and its subsequent failure, is a turning point in Iran's strategic distance from the United States and its Western allies. In such circumstances, Iran has turned more seriously to a balancing foreign policy to counter Western pressures.
The Look East policy found a different basis and logic and was placed on the strategic agenda. In such a way, the Presidents of Iran and Russia signed the "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership" treaty in Moscow on January 17, 2025, to upgrade the level of relations. Looking to the East, with various geographical issues, has chosen Russia as a pillar of balance, which, like the Islamic Republic, is engaged in structural confrontation with the United States and Europe and has been the target of Western sanctions policies. On the other hand, Russia is a neighbor with significant strategic, military, and even economic capabilities that, under the environmental economic pressures resulting from the war, need cooperation with Iran to advance its goals.
Research question: What are the foundations of balancing in Iran's Look East policy? What impact has this had on Russia's political position?
Research hypothesis: Balancing in Iran's Look East policy has been based on competitive foundations, which have led to the elevation of Russia's position to the level of a strategic and geopolitical alliance.
Methodology and theoretical framework: This article aims to explain Russia’s position in the Look East policy and thus provide a critical reading of the results of deepening bilateral relations. The methodological framework for achieving this goal is based on the mixed levels of analysis approach and the Event-Based Trend Impact Analysis method. Inferring trends from important events that are considered turning points is the basis of this method. The events are the raw data, and the researcher focuses on finding connections between them in order to identify specific trends. Trends are considered the results of related events. Successive historical and current influential events (independent variable) are analyzed within the framework of a specific theory, and the relationship between them is examined to explain and formulate foreign policy trends (dependent variables). The method advances research in three layers: describing the current situation, mapping the most likely future trends, and prescribing relevant policy strategies. Therefore, the events considered turning points in Iran's Look East policy and Russia's foreign policy are explained at two levels of analysis: macro (structural changes in the international system) and meso (foreign policymaking in response to systemic changes). This method is used in the theoretical framework of competitive balancing as a foreign policy model.
Results and discussion: The geographical scope of Iran's Look East policy varies. This diversity has led some experts to define the East as the main target of this approach. Russia is not geographically limited to the East in its Look East policy, but it has an Eastern and Asian identity. What is considered the basic logic of the Look East policy is the rise of Asia and the decline of the United States. The evolution of Iranian foreign policy, which gradually showed Tehran’s greater divergence from the West and the United States, provided a new definition of the Look East approach, in a way that led it to prioritize emerging powers, including Russia. On the other hand, Russian leaders who think independently of interests in the light of the Eurasianist approach have adopted a strategy of balancing against the United States.
In this strategic framework, Russia becomes one of the main centers of the Look East policy, based on situational variables (as a great strategic power) and policy-making variables (counter-hegemonic confrontation). Necessities in various areas have driven the Look East policy towards Russia. The most important strategic imperatives include balancing the United States' international and regional standings in West Asia. The most important geopolitical imperatives include participation in managing regional security crises, peaceful nuclear interactions, and defense-arms exchanges. Finally, the most important geo-economic imperatives include lifting sanctions, transit cooperation, and Eurasianism.
Conclusion: The Russian pillar of the Look East policy is both a necessity and a strategic choice. Deepening relations with Russia is a strategic necessity for Iran, primarily to counter the hegemony of the West led by the United States. On the one hand, the focus of the Look East policy on Russia as a strategic choice is because it is both a great power in the East and a neighbor of Iran. Based on the international structural changes (the process of transition from the West to the East), Iran has tried to strengthen its relations with emerging powers that participate in the alternative international structure.
Also, given Russia's foreign policy approach, which is military-security in nature, and its role and intervention in West Asian affairs, this country is at the center of the strategic and military orientation of the Look East policy. As a result, the two countries' efforts to achieve their common goals are determined by creating a balance in foreign policy. The trend of international structural changes indicates a redistribution of power rather than a transfer of power, and this trend requires that the Look East policy be balanced with orientations in other geographical regions to expand the diversity of Iran's foreign relations.
کلیدواژهها [English]
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