Leiden University Student Repository

Masaoutis, Michail (2021)

The Iranian Panjagan (crossbow) against the Saudi Scimitar (sword). The Iran-Saudi Arabia rivalry in Yemen.

Master thesis | Middle Eastern Studies (MA)

This thesis analyses the determinants, of Iranian foreign policy towards the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia within, the regional sub-system, of the Middle East. Iranian foreign policy approach during two regional crises- the- Bahraini and the Yemeni one- varies greatly and raises questions about the rationale of Iranian foreign policy towards Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This research tries to explain why Islamic Republic of Iran chose a militant approach in the Yemeni crisis whilst it opted for a passive approach in the Bahraini crisis. Furthermore, it seeks to discover what is the nature and the causality of Iran’s militant option in Yemen. This work is a qualitative research which use the case study of Yemeni Civil War, as a pattern of analysis. Through the lens of structural realism this research argues that the Iranian foreign policy posture towards Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is defensive in nature, and is aimed at the Iranian state’s survival and security maximization.

Iran

KSA

Yemen

Bahrain

foreign policy

deterrence

structural realism

Author

Masaoutis, Michail

Faculty

Faculty of Humanities

Specialisation

Modern Middle East Studies

Supervisors

M. Calculli

ECTS Credits

60

Language

en