Iran and Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Policy on Syria Developments (2019-2011)

With the onset of the political crisis in Syria, regional actors have adopted different orientations based on their interests in relation to this country. Saudi Arabia saw the Syrian crisis as an opportunity to improve its regional position. However, Iran's influential role in the Syrian crisis has increased Iran's regional power, which has raised concerns among Iran's regional rival, Saudi Arabia. The purpose of this study is to investigate the roots of the formation of tension between Iran and Saudi Arabia in the face of the Syrian crisis, using balance of power theory. The research findings show that the governments of Iran and Saudi Arabia are somehow involved in proxy war in the Syrian crisis and are seeking to increase their influence and reduce the influence of rivals so that the pursuit of interests in Syria for Saudi Arabia in changing the government of Bashar al-Assad and for Iran in maintaining it. This conflict of interest and rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran, has created a zero-sum game that has prolonged the crisis in Syria, and increased the difference between the two countries.