Buffer space

Some geographical areas, in order to prevent the possibility of direct contact and conflict between rival powers, often by mutual or unilateral agreements, function as buffer spaces. These powers are then committed not to trespass on any spaces or take control of them. Buffers as geographical phenomena are as old as mankind, but there have been no academic studies on the subject so far, and only some brief scientific definitions of ""buffer states"" have been proposed by scientists without dealing with their nature, features and usages. On the other hand, ""buffer geographical space"" was first used by the authors of this study without prior inclusion in geographical, political and international studies. Rivalry of two powers and existence of a weak space between them with strategic importance for them shifts their attention to this space and a rivalry emerges between them in controlling and maintaining it. Also, such spaces are zones for the incidence of overt and covert rivalries between these powers. Problems that countries, like Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, Korea, Afghanistan and Cambodia in Asia, Poland and Belgium in Europe, Uruguay, Nicaragua, in Central America in the twentieth century, have faced or sometimes they still face. Current study, based on descriptive – analytical method, seeks to understand and explain the nature and structural-functional characteristics of buffer spaces

In the past two centuries, Iran as a buffer space, has played multi-functional roles in political and geopolitical arena due to power games of maritime and land empires of Britain and Russia in order to prevent the possibility of direct contact and conflict between rival powers. These functions have been performed sometimes by bilateral powers’agreements, sometimes by one of them and sometimes by Iran’s government and nation as a reaction against powers’ game. Although Iran has had a weak and neutral presence in these regional and global rivalries, it has had different important functions that can be presented as a model of functions and roles of buffer State. So, this research considers explaning the functions of Iran’s Buffer space with a descriptive- analytic methodology. Data gathering procedure is library and field finding. The research findings iluminate 22- functions in two general class of external functions and internal functions of Iran’s Buffer location.