Iran

Iran's foreign policy in the past two decades has been the subject of debate between those who prioritize interests and those who prioritize ideology when analyzing the factors influencing Iran's behavior on the international stage. Both perspectives have sought to understand Iran's foreign policy through the lenses of rationality and ideology, exploring the interplay between national and ideological interests. Given the significant role of the United States in shaping Iran's foreign policy post-Islamic Revolution, a key question arises regarding the balance between national interests and ideological motivations in the Islamic Republic of Iran's foreign relations, particularly concerning the U.S. This article, drawing on the theoretical framework of identity realism, argues that following the end of the Iran-Iraq War and the collapse of the bipolar world order, Iran has realigned its principles, objectives, interests, and ideologies to prioritize national interests and safeguard its survival in the face of American policies and pressures. The study employs a descriptive-analytical research methodology, relying on library sources for data collection. The research findings challenge the assumption of a dichotomy between ideological motivations and national interests in Iran's foreign policy, demonstrating a consistent alignment between these two factors in practice. Iran recognizes that in today's evolving regional landscape, it must integrate national interests, ideological considerations, and the international system, viewing the convergence of these elements as essential for safeguarding its national interests and ensuring its survival.

This study aims to investigate Saudi Arabia’s quest for regional hegemony, including its objectives, initiatives, and difficulties. In other words, the degree to which Saudi Arabia has been successful in establishing itself as the region’s dominant power. It is crucial to thoroughly explain Saudi Arabia’s psychological and practical justifications for pursuing regional hegemony in this context. To examine the political discourses, reality, narratives, ambitions, and perspectives of Saudi Arabia and compare these with other regional powers in this area, as well as to highlight a number of context-specific constraints on Saudi Arabia’s aspirations for regional hegemony, is the goal of the research. In addition, it intends to investigate how external powers such as the United States, China, Russia, the European Union, and Turkey influence Middle Eastern regional dynamics based on their own vested interests. This analysis demonstrates that Saudi Arabia’s drive for regional hegemony is mostly restrained by external causes. First, despite its preeminent economic power, the country lacks strong military capabilities to provide a security shield for its friends in this region. Second, the sectarian politics and undiversified economy of the region make it unlikely that secondary nations will receive full public goods. Third, low economic integration, the perception of a common regional threat, the absence of a broad free trade arrangement, the superiority of hard power over soft power, and a lack of mutual trust among regional countries are significantly diminishing the acceptance of Saudi Arabia’s hegemonic role in the region. However, Saudi Arabia is deliberately involving regional partners and coalitions in regional growth. The country takes on the main task for reshaping the Middle East’s economy and elevating this region to success. If Saudi Arabia is successful in fostering regional integration, offering a security shield, encouraging trust building, and collaborating with other states in this region to address shared regional threats, it will have a greater chance than the majority of other states in the region to become the regional hegemon. 

Purpose- The model of sustainable human development goes beyond sustainable development and has been adopted as the global development charter for the twenty-first century. Development should consider the needs of the current generation in addition to being sustainable. The impact of empowering members of society, particularly educated youth, can be significant. Skills-oriented and applied scientific training deals with aspects of human resource capabilities that are developed based on knowledge, skills, and attitudes. The implementation of applied scientific education in a way that is useful in the direction of economic development is critical. Assessing the need of society for a type of education that can be useful is important, but so is the method of providing that education.  Design/methodology/approach- One of the research's key questions is whether graduates of applied scientific education were successful in achieving their goals of economic development and job acquisition. The students at the Applied Science University are the focus of this research. The challenges of a lack of suitable businesses, as well as the existence of skill training centers that operate in the three sectors of agriculture, services, and industry, are the reasons for choosing this province. They can help the people. A questionnaire-based survey is the research method used in this study. Students from scientific research centers and theoretical foundations were asked to answer questions on a questionnaire designed to achieve the research objectives. Finding- According to the surveys conducted, only 3.24% believe that the current skill education system is adjusted and designed with the characteristics of the rural community, as well as improving skills and improving social life conditions, respectively 4.04 and 3.99% of the most important motivations for studying in applied scientific universities based on the results of the analysis were based on the information collected from supplementary questionnaires. In addition to that, the examination of the efficiency and performance of the skill training system in different dimensions (curriculum and content, facilities and equipment) shows that "attachment and sense of belonging", "strengthening of urban behavior" and "desire of young people to transform from village to city" are three It is a case where the respondents believe that applied science education contributed to their improvement.

Purpose- This research attempts to analyze the role of livestock production in the spatial organization of the houses in Liqvan village that is one of the famous rural areas at the national level in Iran, and it owes most of its fame to the dairy products produced there (especially cheese). Design/methodology/approach- This study has been carried out in two sections: library and field studies. The theoretical part is done from available and accessible library resources (including books, magazines, articles, and authoritative sites). The field part is done using the "phenomenology" method. Findings- Studies show that in the traditional livelihood period, the role of livelihood was influential in the formation and spatial composition of the houses in this village, and the old living spaces of Liqvan were shaped to respond to the functions, with appropriate internal divisions, to provide long-term living facilities. However, along with the contemporary wave of modernization and changes in the needs of the present era, and especially the significant shift in income from traditional activities to mass dairy production, in the newly built houses, the residential spaces have often been converted into living spaces that do not have much affinity with local customs and traditions and do not have compatibility with the native architecture. Original/Value- Given the significant changes in the livelihoods of rural communities, it is crucial to implement strategies for developing and regenerating villages like Liqvan. This includes stabilizing rural centers, creating production and promoting income centers, and revising development strategies and policies. The focus should be on leveraging local potentials. The study also advocates introducing new productions and reviving past activities and services through production clusters with technical and specialized consultations. Furthermore, the preservation of indigenous architecture and the regeneration of local spaces can contribute to the growth of the tourism industry in the village.

The specific patterns of life formed on Earth are due to interactions that exist between man and the environment. In this regard, the present study is based on field and documentary data and using MABAC model and GIS, seeks to evaluate and rank the effective natural variables in the location and spatial distribution of castle settlements of west Azerbaijan province in Iran. In order to data analysis, after forming a database, the spatial distribution of identified castle settlements evaluated and analyzed in relation to variables of distance from the river, elevation levels, slope, aspect, landform, climatic classes, land use/vegetation and soil type. Findings obtained from the data analysis in the form of MABAC model show that distance from the river, elevation levels and landform (plain and mountainous) have the most effect on location and spatial distribution of castle settlements in studied region and other natural variables such as climatic classes, land use/ vegetation, soil type, slope and aspect have been effective in spatial distribution of these settlements in terms of importance and effective, respectively.

Piracy or the use of violence by various types of ships or vessels to take the property of the passengers of other ships or vessels has been one of the important maritime threats from the past until today. During the Middle Ages until the 19 th century, due to the flourishing sea trade, in the Indian Ocean, this phenomenon was widespread, but few scattered reports of it have remained. This research aims to explain the geographical and cultural relationship between the history and modern forms of piracy in the Indian Ocean, to provide a constructive analysis of the roots of piracy nowadays. Based on this, in this research, with a library method and a descriptive-analytical method, and by referring to the most important historical sources and research, scattered reports of piracy during the first to thirteenth centuries AH were analyzed. At the same time, by using analytical studies in cultural criminology, an attempt has been made to analyze this phenomenon from the perspective of deterministic theories and subcultures. Thus, it has been shown that the geography and aspects of the piracy culture in the Indian Ocean are consistent with this phenomenon today. It has also been shown that the inclusive Iranian governments have played the most effective role in fighting this phenomenon; it has been suggested that in today's approach to the phenomenon of piracy, the cultural view of the social and political roots of this phenomenon should be considered. In dealing with it, the fundamental methods of the cultural solution should be used in confrontation with the phenomenon, together with legal and military actions. It has also been suggested that the Iranian government should play a trans-regional cultural effort to revive its historical role in controlling this phenomenon.          

This article examines the legality of Israel’s claim to a right of preemptive self-defense against Iran within the framework of international law. It argues that such a claim lacks any valid legal foundation and stands in stark contrast to the fundamental principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations as well as established international jurisprudence. According to Article 51 of the UN Charter, the use of force in self-defense is only permissible in response to an actual and verifiable armed attack. Any military action based solely on the anticipation or assumption of an imminent threat does not meet the legal threshold and is not recognized by the international legal order. The International Court of Justice (ICJ), in landmark cases such as Nicaragua (1986), the Advisory Opinion on the Wall (2004), and Democratic Republic of the Congo v. Uganda (2005), has consistently adopted a narrow interpretation of self-defense, explicitly rejecting the doctrine of preemptive force. Israel’s assertion of facing a permanent threat from Iran, absent concrete evidence of an imminent armed attack, cannot serve as a lawful justification for the use of force. Such actions not only contravene the prohibition on the use of force and the principle of state sovereignty but may also constitute a breach of peremptory norms of international law (jus cogens) and amount to an act of aggression. Furthermore, acceptance of such a precedent poses serious challenges to the maintenance of international peace and security and risks undermining the credibility of the global legal order. Drawing on authoritative sources, international instruments, and comparative legal analysis, the article concludes that Israel’s invocation of preemptive self-defense is legally unfounded and incompatible with contemporary international law.

Humans in today's world are always in a decision-making situation. In this regard, political deci-sions are more sensitive. Today, decision-making has become scientific and various organiza-tions and universities are active in this direction. One of these faculties established in our coun-try is the Faculty of Governance. So, the purpose of this faculty is to train forces for different intellectual and management levels, including policy design and formulation and even policy implementation. Therefore, the author of the current study seeks to discover the impact of the faculty of governance on decision-making developments, especially political decisions. The current research continues with the question of how can the faculty of governance affect the quality of decisions, especially political decisions? Also, according to the SWOT theory, how can the role of this faculty in maximizing or minimizing the quality of these decisions be de-fined and future researched? Also, what achievements can each path seek? In this regard, the faculty of governance is the independent variable of the research. Also, decisions have the role of a dependent variable that can assume two states of maximum quality and minimum quality. In this article, the method of collecting information is in the form of library documents, and the SWOT strategic analysis method is also used for data analysis.

The Middle East and North Africa constitute one of the strategic and most significant regions in the world with a turbulent history. The region witnessed the birth of various countries and tense developments from the second decade of the 20th century until the middle of the century, and most of the countries in the region, including Arabic countries and Israel, emerged during the period. In this regard, the countries in the region have experienced conflicts, wars, invasions, and, sometimes, peace, in their relations with Israel. The latest development in this respect is the Saudi-led normalization of ties between some Arabic countries and Israel to oppose Iran and its axis of resistance. Though this has posed a number of threats to Iran’s national security, some opportunities are evident in it, as well. Thus, the main question of the present study is what opportunities the normalization of ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel can have for the empowerment of the axis of resistance. The study utilizes a descriptive and analytical methodology to answer the question, and the overall result of the study – i.e., the tested hypothesis – shows that opportunities like the creation of chasms between the government and society in Saudi Arabia, the pressure felt by Fatah and the need to reconcile with Hamas, Muslims’ reaction to the negation of the Palestinian Dream by Saudis, the creation of chasms between the government and society of Israel, and the gradual withdrawal of the U.S. from the region are all factors that can boost the axis of resistance based on the existence of groups who oppose the process of normalization across Saudi Arabia, Israel, and the Islamic world at large.

The position of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Putin's doctrine of Eurasianism, especially after 2012, has gained considerable importance in Russia's foreign policy. In the light of Putin's Eurasianism discourse, the extensive relations between Iran and Russia in the political, economic, military, security, intelligence and nuclear fields were promoted to the level of two strategic allies. The main question raised in this research is, what was Iran's position in Putin's doctrine of Eurasianism? And what have been the most important influencing variables in the nuclear relations between the two countries? The findings of this research, which was carried out in a descriptive-analytical method and with a historical approach, show that the position of Iran in Putin's doctrine of Eurasianism is important in such a way that without Iran, the said doctrine will face serious problems and many variables will affect the increasing nuclear relations. It has been influential between the two countries, which shows the convergence of the societies and domestic elites between the two countries, the anti-Western foreign policy of the two countries, and the current international conditions resulting from the war between Russia and Ukraine.

Since 1970, Turkey has started a series of dams under the name of GAP project during six pe-riods with the aim of developing its southeast regions. This plan has reduced the water re-sources coming out of Turkey and has had destructive consequences on the ecosystem of the countries that are in the path of the said water resources and has caused environmental, eco-nomic and social damages. Although Iran is not directly in the path of the outgoing waters, it has faced such threats as a result. Using the descriptive-analytical method and library and me-dia sources, this research is looking for an answer to this question: How will Turkey's GAP plan cause a big crisis in the region? With the completion of Turkey's GAP project and the continuation of this situation, the consequences of this mega-project under the title of five threats to security (environmental, social, economic, political and military) from the perspec-tive of the Copenhagen School of Security Studies have caused the following and threaten the lives of the people of the region. The drying up of the downstream rivers, floods, intensifica-tion and increase of the micro dust center, lack of water, unemployment, outbreak of disease, deepening of social damage, migration, damage to historical monuments, etc. The findings show that by implementing the GAP project, Turkey has turned water into a pressure lever in the country's foreign policy and one of the main factors of geopolitics and strategy in the Middle East. And contrary to their claims, this project is not in line with sustainable economic development and has caused threats and consequences in the countries affected by the project.

EU's foreign policy instruments have been mainly designed with a normative approach for contribu-tion to stability and peace in a changing political landscape. However, EU foreign policy faces differ-ent challenges that constantly test its ability related to conflict resolution, international understand-ing, and the defence of its Interests, namely, the crisis between the US and Iran in January 2020. This research is to answer the following question: What were the failures of the EU's foreign policy in the middle of the crisis between the US and Iran in January 2020? This paper aims to determine the shortcoming of the EU foreign policy affecting its role as a Global Power during the US-Iran crisis in January 2020. Main objective is to determine the failures of the EU's foreign policy affecting its role as a Global Power in the middle of the crisis between the US and Iran in January 2020 and specific objectives are to summarize the role of the EU as a Global Power in the middle of conflicts, to identi-fy the failure of the European foreign policy during the US-Iran crisis in January 2020 and to suggest a change in the EU foreign policy approach for improving Europeans' role in the international sys-tem.

The current research explores the water crisis and the security in the Middle East region. It ad-dresses the challenges and solutions in terms of lack of available fresh water resources and its unbalanced distribution in the face of increase in water demand as a result of the industrializa-tion of societies, population growth and negative effects of climate change which leads to the occurrence of water scarcity and turning it into a global crisis. Hence, concerns about the lack of water resources in the world in recent decades have led to two general speculations about the future. Relations between governments should be formed around international water resources. One hand, there are those who predict that in the near future, water will be a reason for creating violent conflicts between governments. On the other hand, there are writers and theoreticians who believe in the "catalytic" nature of water for the approximation of governments and more cooperation in this field. The issue of water has emerged both in the form of war and coopera-tion. In the meantime, the need for water in the dry and water-scarce region of the Middle East, the weakness of the international water cooperation systems and the numerous political-economic and social tensions in it, have created the arena for the emergence of water-related security threats in this region.

Southwest Asia has played a central role in the geopolitics of the global system since the Cold War years. All characteristics of a geopolitical region can be observed in Southwest Asia. In this geographical area, signs of challenge, crisis, conflict, and competition for power expansion among regional actors and significant powers are expanding. The security environment of Southwest Asia is linked with many indicators of "geopolitics of crisis" and "geopolitics of chaos." Given these conditions, as well as the political and social challenges and the geopoliti-cal conflicts and security concerns in the region, the actions of actors—especially the emer-gence of centrifugal actors in Southwest Asia—will also change. Accordingly, it is predictable that the states of Southwest Asia can achieve their goals under conditions of stability and se-curity. As a result, the national goals and interests of the Islamic Republic of Iran can also be better secured under such conditions. In other words, the agent's actions in this region influ-ence the security environment of this area. The aim of this study is to explain the actions of the agents and examine the impact of their actions on the processes of the security environ-ment. The study's findings show that one of Iran's security priorities in Southwest Asia is to prevent the increase of influence by regional and extra-regional powers in this area and reduce it. In this regard, Iran seeks to tie its interests to the region by creating economic and cultural relations that ensure mutual and multilateral benefits through appropriate and reasonable se-curity policy.

From a temporal perspective, we observe the presence and distribution of beveled rim bowls in Iran and Mesopotamia from the mid-fourth millennium BC until the beginning of the Bronze Age. The large production and specific shape of this pottery, alongside its extensive distribution, have prompted many archaeologists to study this subject. Beveled rim bowls is categorized into two types: Uruk and proto Elamite, based on their shape and structure. The geographical conditions in Iran have differentiated the distribution of this pottery compared to Mesopotamia. During this period, the Uruk type gradually changed in structure and transformed into the proto Elamite type. The regions of Khuzestan, Central Zagros, and the Central Plateau have the highest density of sites and pottery in Iran, connecting these centers through intermediary areas. According to the studies conducted, this distribution in Iran has been exported to various other regions by local elites or specific groups of people. Perhaps, this group consisted of local merchants who, through migration, spread the proto Elamite culture in Iran, while the Uruk type of beveled rim bowl was produced and distributed for economic or political purposes in significant sites such as Susa, Chogha Mish, Tepe Yahya, Sefalin, and Godin Tepe.

Objective: The present study aimed to explore the socio-cultural challenges of family therapy. This applied research utilized a qualitative phenomenological approach. Methods: The study population consisted of specialists in various fields of couples and family therapy in Tehran province during the years 2022-2023, who met the inclusion criteria for the study. The inclusion criteria were psychologists or counselors with a Master's or Doctoral degree who had at least five years of experience in one of the family-related fields and were willing to collaborate in the research. A purposive, snowball sampling method was used, continuing until data saturation was reached, with a final selection of 15 specialists. Semi-structured interviews were used for data collection, and the data were analyzed using an inductive thematic analysis approach. Findings: The findings revealed 24 initial concepts, 5 sub-themes, and 2 main themes as the socio-cultural challenges and factors that perpetuate these challenges. Ineffective application of existing family therapy theories in response to societal changes, social harms affecting family systems over time, and socio-cultural-economic damages were among the sub-themes of challenges. Differences in opinions regarding the strengthening of theory-building and the approach to localizing interventions without relying on existing theories were identified as factors that sustain these challenges. Conclusion: This study offers a new perspective on the impact of societal context on the effective or ineffective implementation of interventions based on non-native theories, providing an alternative approach to examining the issues of cultural insularity in interventions, beyond considerations of religion and written documents in research.