dr. ali valigholizadeh

This study employs a descriptive-analytical method to examine and analyze the geo-economic outlook of the Aras Free Trade-Industrial Zone in relation to foreign trade, investment, job creation, transit, tourism, and economic-security planning for the Aras border area. The research employs trend analysis and futures studies, drawing on library literature and statistical data within the framework of existential philosophy and the macroeconomic goals of free zones. Despite the statistical uncertainties surrounding the performance of Iranian free trade zones in general and Aras in particular, the evaluation of Aras's geo-economic outlook reveals significant inefficiencies, indicating a failure to meet its primary objectives. The findings demonstrate that, from a geo-economic perspective, the prospects for free trade zones in Iran reflect the broader economic situation of the country, with the Aras Free Zone being no exception. The outlook, economic size, and geo-economic influence of Iran’s free trade zones should be assessed in comparison to those of the national economy. Given the prevailing trends in Iran’s macroeconomics, the geo-economic outlook and economic performance of the country’s free trade zones are not surprising. However, the potential of the Iranian economy is much greater than what is currently being realized. This situation can be effectively improved through principled planning and policymaking, particularly within a framework that prioritizes national interests, the benefits of which would undoubtedly extend to the free trade zones. On the other hand, if the current conditions and existing policies continue, it is likely that the free trade zone initiative in Iran will become entirely ineffective and unattractive in the near future, especially from a geo-economic perspective.

Dust storms are among the most significant natural hazards that in recent years have led to a decline in the environmental quality of many urban and rural settlements in Iran. Therefore, the present study aims to examine the impact of dust storms on the urban environmental quality of Susangerd.

In this  descriptive and analytical research, the statistical population consists of 377 citizens of Susangerd aged over 15. The designed questionnaire includes four main components. Data analysis was conducted using statistical methods, including the one-sample T-test and stepwise regression analysis, within the SPSS software environment.

The findings indicate that, based on the one-sample T-test, the environmental component had a mean score of 4.27, the economic component 4.16, the social component 4.00, and the physical component 3.71, all of which exceed the baseline value of 3. This suggests that dust storms have had an adverse impact on urban environmental quality in Susangerd across all studied components.

According to the results, among the examined components, the environmental component had the most significant impact on urban environmental quality, with a beta coefficient of 0.314. Then, the economic component (0.300), the physical component (0.276), and finally the social component with a beta coefficient of 0.274 had the greatest contribution to urban environmental quality. In summary, the environmental effects of dust storms on Susangerd urban environment were more pronounced than those of the other three components.

Currently, the conflict over the exploitation of Tigris and Euphrates has become one of the most important conflicts between Turkey and Iraq. Regarding this important issue, this article tries to answer three basic questions in this field: what are the key drivers of conflict over these water resources between Turkey and Iraq? Second, what are the possible scenarios of conflict over shared waters? And third, what are the optimal strategies to settle this conflict? The present research is applied in terms of type and is futures studies in terms of nature and method used cross impact analysis and scenario writing techniques. At first step, this article tries to identify the drivers of the conflict by referring to experts in this field and analyzing the findings using MicMac software. After identifying the key drivers, strong scenarios are determined by Scenario Wizard software. The research findings show that out of a total of 189 situations on the scenario portfolio, 28 are critical situations, 93 are static situations and 68 are favorable situations. Therefore, critical and static situations occupied a major part of the scenario portfolio. Finally, by considering the most possible scenarios and emphasizing the key drivers of conflict over shared waters between Turkey and Iraq, some strategies are presented to settle the causes of conflict.

Local elections in Türkiye are held every five years and involve the election of mayors and city council members in large and small cities in Türkiye. Turkish municipal elections are important because they reflect the general attitude of the people; especially in the field of domestic and local issues - economic, social, political, etc. life against political parties that try to exploit the results of local elections in the campaign for political competitions at the national level. In other words, at first glance, we are faced with an ordinary, relatively apolitical election based more on local affiliations, apparent abilities, candidates' field activity records in the municipal field, urban development projects and so on, rather than on party and political affiliations. Nevertheless, Turkish municipal elections are always lively and accompanied by maximum participation and a lot of political swings.

This study as a qualitative one attempts to analyze and evaluate the results of Türkiye 2024 local elections and the main reasons affecting them in the political sphere of Türkiye using a descriptive-analytic method and library data collection method.

2024 local elections in Türkiye highlighted the country's democratic maturity. The outcome of political competition at the ballot box represents another manifestations of democratic consolidation in the country. The Republican People's Party (CHP) ranked first in the elections where received 37.76% of the votes and won 14 metropolitan municipalities and 21 provinces. It is noteworthy that the CHP did not win over additional voters and did not expand its voter base; rather, the turnout rate was significantly lower, and the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) appears to have experienced a loss of support. As a result, the number of CHP voters increased by 3.3 million, while the AK Party saw a decline of 4.2 million. There is no doubt that the opposition's "grassroots alliance" strategy was effective in metropolitan areas, as the majority of the Green Left Party (YSP), informally known as the Peoples' Democratic Party (DEM Party), and Good Party (IP) supported CHP-affiliated candidates. In addition to consolidating its base, the CHP received strong support from similar-minded parties. The election results suggest that social programs, candidates and responses to economic challenges played a more significant role in voter decision-making than investments and projects of AK. Thus, the CHP succeeded in maintaining the opposition alliance established between 2019 and 2023, albeit with a different approach. In this context, the outreach and mobilization efforts surrounding CHP candidates Ekrem Imamoğlu and Mansur Yavaş effectively connected with the respective bases of aligned political parties.

Local governance, as one of the main sources of local participation in representative democracy, is formed through local elections and represents a democratic mechanism for managing the collective needs of human groups living in a geographical area of ​​a country. Public participation is the main foundation of democracy and can directly affect the quality of democracy at the national level through local governance. Mayors and city councils in Türkiye are recognized as the most prominent symbols of local governance and democracy. Mayors have considerable authority in the political-executive system of this country, and the parties that take control of municipalities have numerous tools and facilities to strengthen their political and social base. Also, given the close ties established in local governance between parties and local residents, reaching the position of mayor, especially in Türkiye 's metropolitan cities, is an important exercise for introducing the country's future politicians. According to the results of the research, various factors were influential in this competitive-political campaign, some of which were socio-economic factors (the realities of citizens' daily lives at the local level), and the other part was the organizational problems and party base of the ruling party and new developments in the opposition, which were influential in the results of these elections; including the important changes in the political sphere of influence and local-national power of parties, as well as the pattern of party relations in the Turkish political sphere.

Geostrategy is a type of foreign policy that is mainly driven by geographical factors. Unlike geopolitics, which explains the current situation based on geographical factors, geostrategy is based on geographical features that can be discussed as spatial relationships and dependencies, in defining and guiding the country's foreign policy, a more comprehensive and accurate worldview to advance the country's goals in different regions and achieve a superior position or win-win situation against other competitors. The goal of geostrategy is to reach the highest and most stable level of national interests in the opposite dimensions. In the framework of this perspective, the main question of the research is, from a geostrategic point of view, what capacities are there in Iran's neighborhood relations with Azerbaijan to advance a successful strategy for Iran against other competitors? It is assumed that in order to gain the real position of its neighbor in the region, along with deepening its relations with its other neighbors (especially Armenia), in order to deepen its relations with Azerbaijan, Iran takes advantage of certain geostrategic capacities and relationships, which are discussed in this research.

This article has a qualitative nature and approach and using the descriptive-analytic method expounds the geostrategic opportunities of Azerbaijan in terms of geographical features for Iran's more effective and bolder role in the South Caucasus. Also, this article explains Azerbaijan's geostrategic opportunities for Iran in the South Caucasus. On the one hand, the results of the research show that Azerbaijan, in different dimensions of its geographic scope and topography, demographic characteristics and cultural commonalities, historical commonalities and the size of the economic market, has brought wide geostrategic opportunities for the influence and powerful role of Iran in the region and beyond. On the other hand, the research results point to Iran's most bitter experience in the region. This means that despite the available opportunities, Iran cannot use them for various reasons and somehow leaves the field for the powerful influence of its competitors.

According to the results of this research, Azerbaijan can be considered as the most geographical and economic gateway and trade-communication bottleneck of Iran with the South Caucasus and various surrounding markets. However, this does not mean negating the geostrategic importance of Armenia's communication geography, especially from the point of view of competing with Iran's rivals. As Azerbaijan and Turkey strive to diversify their communication corridors, Iran's economic and commercial interests in the region require to pursue both paths. However, without changing the situation in Azerbaijan-Armenia relations, we cannot hope much about the effectiveness of the Armenian path. However, as the past experience of Iran's political-economic relations with Azerbaijan shows, Iran should not waste more this opportunity.

One of the biggest problems that the relations of the parties suffer from is the lack of mutual trust. In this context, considering that Azerbaijan is a smaller power and Iran is considered a dominant and larger power, building trust and trying to attract Azerbaijan should be prioritized by Iran. Otherwise, as in the current situation, Azerbaijan will move more and more towards rival countries and enemies of Iran (such as Israel) (a trend that has recently been observed by Armenia), which adds to the complexity of the situation. When Iran cannot (due to geopolitical and ideological considerations) fill the vacuum of power and influence in its neighborhood with all its geo-strategic relations and in a special position from Azerbaijan's neighborhood, rival countries and especially the enemy will make the most of such an opportunity to achieve their goals. They will win their strategy. In general, according to the results of this research, with a geostrategic turn in foreign policy, it is possible to largely build mutual trust in the relations of the parties, as well as overcome political, geopolitical, ideological concerns, and in this situation a major transformation in the influence and role of Iran in South Caucasus and Azerbaijan will be possible.

Housing has been one of the most important household assets throughout history. By examining the factors affecting housing prices, planning and decisions about the future of housing can be made. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effective factors (physical, access, environmental variables) on housing prices in Maragheh, The study is applied research and its method is descriptive-analytical. The statistical population consisted of real estate consultants in Maragheh. Data collection was done by library and field methods. From the mentioned community, according to Cochran's formula, a number of simple random methods have been selected as a sample. Data were analyzed using SPSS software and t-test, analysis of variance and multivariate regression. Findings show that all three components (physical, access, environmental) have an impact on housing prices in Maragheh. There is no significant difference in the impact of each on housing prices in Maragheh. In the physical variables of the building: the quality of the structure, in the access variables: the access to the medical centers and distance from the transport lines and access to the workplace and in the environmental variable: the components of nature and green space and social status have the greatest impact compared to other components. Among the variables affecting housing prices, the access variable had the major impact, then the environmental variable and finally the physical variable had the largest share on housing prices in Maragheh.

The aim of this research is to evaluate the dimensions and components of the ecological city in Mahabad. The type of applied research and its method is descriptive-analytical. Data collection was through library, documentary and field studies. The components of the research, adapted from reliable sources, include environmental, socio-cultural, physical and managerial issues. To analyze the data, SPSS software and sample t-tech statistical tests and step-by-step regression are used, as well as SWAT method is used to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of Mahabad city. The research results show; in the sample T-Tech test, the average of social (3.32) and environmental (3.18) components were higher than the average (3), but they did not reach the optimal level, and the average of management components was (2.05). ) and body with (2.11) were below average. Therefore, in the city of Mahabad, more attention should be paid to the administrative and physical components. Also, the regression analysis shows that socio-cultural, managerial, physical and environmental components are correlated with the intensity of 808/848, 853/848 respectively; and 856/ show their effect on the dependent variable (ecological condition of Mahabad city). The results of the SWOT model show that the best strategies are aggressive and conservative strategies.

One of the new approaches to urban development projects is the Urban Development Strategy (CDS) approach developed in 1999 with the goal of reducing poverty, sustainable development, promoting participation and creating good urban governance.The transition from authority-based planning to participatory planning with the aim of clearly defining the future of the city for urban residents practically causes the dynamism of the urban environment. On the other hand, the current urban development plans with the characteristics of dryness, dictatorship, from top to bottom, have created the lack of participation of the majority of citizens. The Urban Development Strategy Plan is a strategic approach that is now welcomed in many countries around the world, especially in developing countries. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the indicators of urban development strategy in Chabahar. Considering that the city of Chabahar also has a special strategic position in Iran. The type of applied research and its method is descriptive-analytical. Library, documentary, direct observation, questionnaire and interview methods were used to collect information. SPSS software was used to analyze the data.Research results show; there is a significant difference between the baseline limit (3) and the calculated value (2.63). Since the calculated amount is less than the standard, we conclude that the development situation of Chabahar city in the strategic index is unfavorable and unacceptable. So that the component of good urban governance with an average of 2.34 has the lowest and the component of banking with an average of 3.5 have the highest value. The results of the SWOT model also show that the best strategy for Chabahar is an offensive strategy.

Today, due to the rapid growth of the world's population and its concentration in cities, the concept of sustainable urban development has been proposed as a basic component affecting the long-term vision of human societies, and housing and related issues are a global issue, and planners and policy makers in different countries are looking for solutions to solve the related issues. Due to the fact that housing is one of the most important urban uses, it is necessary to design the residential environment properly so that, in addition to greater productivity and security, the correct use of renewable and clean energy causes the least damage to the environment. In this regard, in this research, the components of sustainable housing in Salmas city have been investigated. The type of applied research and its method is descriptive-analytical. To analyze the data, SPSS software and sample t-tech statistical tests, step-by-step regression and one-way variance analysis were used. The results of the investigation of the components of sustainable housing in Salmas show that the physical component has the highest rank with an average of 2.95, followed by the environmental component with an average of 2.91 and the social component with an average of 2.76 and the access component with an average of 2.46, and finally, the economic component with an average of 2.03 has taken the last rank, these results show the great contribution of physical and environmental components in the sustainable housing of Salmas city and the least impact on housing the stability of this city is related to the economic component. In addition, the overall average of all components was lower than the base limit (number 3).

Ecological city, as one of the emerging approaches of sustainable development, is among them. In fact, the ecological city is a city that is harmonious and compatible with nature. The ultimate goal of many of them is to eliminate carbon waste, produce energy from renewable sources and create a healthy environment in the city. Based on this, the aim of this research is to evaluate the dimensions and components of the ecological city in Mahabad. The type of applied research and its method is descriptive-analytical. Data collection was through library, documentary and field studies. To analyze the data, SPSS software and sample t-tech statistical tests and step-by-step regression are used, as well as SWOT method is used to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of Mahabad city. The research results show; the status of Mahabad city in terms of socio-cultural and environmental components is higher than the average level (3), but it has not reached the optimal level. In the environmental component, climatic conditions and natural landscapes have the highest average and socio-cultural items have the highest average related to the sense of place. And all the item related to physical and management components were lower than average. Therefore, in order to achieve an ecological city in Mahabad city, it is necessary to pay more attention to these components. In addition, the results of the SWOT model show that the best strategies are to take advantage of the natural conditions of the city,

The structure of political organization of space and political divisions in Iran, by influencing the emergence and dominance of the center-periphery pattern, has caused the marginal regions of the country, along with increasing deprivation and underdevelopment, to suffer from spatial, political and social rapture with other parts of the country over the last few decades. Therefore, the aim of the present study is to identify the main problems of political organization and administrative-territorial organization in Iran affected by the model of a unitary centralized governance system. This study seeks to answer the question: What are the most important challenges and problems affected by the unitary centralized governance structure for the organization and administrative-territorial organization of the country? According to the results of this study, the most important problems of political organization of space in Iran are; Ignorance of spatial-geographical justice, weak national development, infiltration of informal factors, formation of inappropriate administrative-managerial structure, weakness in the formation of national solidarity and structural unity and geographical homogeneity, extreme political-spatial centralism in the center and insufficient attention to geographical-human quality factors in political organization of space. This is an applied study and tries to provide an efficient pattern of political organization and territorial-administrative organization for the country with a descriptive-analytical method. According to the results, it seems that the "unitary decentralized or unitary regional governance-territorial model" is more compatible with the natural and human conditions of Iran and can to a large extent solve the problems of the current system of political divisions in Iran.

Introduction 

The tourism industry is one of the most lucrative and at the same time healthy and clean industries for the economy of any country. This prosperity industry represents the political, economic, social, security, cultural and scientific stability of the world. In other words, the tourism industry, with its unique privileges, simultaneously provides several goals in the national space of a country. While other industries just provide part of the desired goals. Medical tourism as one of the dimensions of tourism contributes to the sustainable development and dynamism of countries. This type of tourism is in the center of attention of many countries due to its low cost and high income, and many developing countries are making big plans for the development of this industry. Iran is considered as an important destination for medical tourism in the world, especially in the Islamic world, with its specialized human resources and advanced medical facilities and due to its high capacities in attracting medical tourists. Due to the importance of medical tourism and the existing potential in Tabriz city and the fact that Tabriz is one of the most important cities in terms of medical tourism, so this study was intended to analyze the effective components on the development of medical tourism in Tabriz. 

Methodology:

The research type is applied and its method is descriptive-analytical. Data collection was through books, articles, dissertations and related researches and field data and questionnaire (based on Likert scale). Also, the statistical population of the study consists of medical tourists in Tabriz in 2019. The statistical population was 132,125 people. Cochran's formula was used to determine the sample size which according to it, the sample size is 384 people. In the present study, simple random sampling method has been exerted. Questionnaire data in SPSS software were analyzed through Spearman correlation coefficient and regression test.

Result and discussion :

According to the relationship between price and development of medical tourism with respect to the R-value, which is -0.986, and this value is less than the critical value of Spearman with a degree of freedom of 383, which is 0.001, so there is an inverse and negative relationship between prices and the development of medical tourism. However, regarding the relationship between the quality of medical services and the development of medical tourism at a significant level of one domain, the significance level of Spearman test was 0.000, and this level was less than the minimum significant level of 0.05, and also calculated according to the R-value which is 0.869, and this value is greater than Spearman's critical value with a degree of freedom of 383, which is 0.001, therefore, there is a significant relationship between the quality of medical services and the development of medical tourism. Regarding the relationship between culture and the development of medical tourism, according to the R-value, which is 0.720, and this value is greater than Spearman's critical value with a degree of freedom of 383, which is 0.000, therefore, there is a significant relationship between culture and development medical tourism in Tabriz. Concerning the relationship between medical facilities and equipment and the development of medical tourism, this level was less than the minimum level of 0.05, therefore, there is a significant relationship between medical facilities and equipment and the development of medical tourism in the city of Tabriz. Finally, the relationship between information technology and the development of medical tourism is calculated according to the R-value, which is 0.834, so there is a significant relationship between information technology and the development of medical tourism.

Conclusion:

 Tourism makes up the bulk of a country's foreign exchange earnings. The growing industry ranked third in international trade in 2000, according to the World Trade Organization. It is known as the world's largest industry after oil and automobile manufacturing. One of the types of tourism is medical tourism. According to the World Health Organization in 2004, about $ 50 billion is spent annually on the treatment of patients in the region in European and American countries. Attracting a percentage of this amount can have a significant impact on the medical tourism economy of Asian countries. As the research results show, the price of medical and tourism services as well as the quality of medical and tourism services, culture and facilities, medical tourism facilities and equipment, and information and communication technology are among the effective factors on the development of medical tourism in Tabriz metropolis. Therefore, in order to develop this industry, it is necessary to make the price of medical services and tourism transparent; increase the quality of medical services and tourism; increase and promote the culture of tourism; utilization of medical and tourism facilities and equipment with high technology and international standards; and utilization of information technology in the fields of medicine and tourism to benefit from the extraordinary advantages of this industry in order to create employment and currency for the country.

Intrduction:

 During these decades, some concepts like “strategic alliance”, “strategic coalition”, “strategic participation” and “strategic competition” have been used in media and diplomatic literature that all of them are defined in the framework of “strategic relations”. This research is intended to expound strategic relations at the first step and to investigate the relation between this concept and the four above mentioned concepts and also to extract geopolitical factors of strategic relations at the second step.

 Methoddology :

The research method adopted here is based on induction and its tactics like library findings,interview with specialists and inferential analysis are used regarding the requirements.

Competition and cooperation in the geopolitical theories: from geopolitical point of view, competition is a kind of group conflict in international system which requires the existence of the states, powers or organizations which are similar to the states and are taken different forms based on the situations of the historical evolution. Geopolitical point of view toward competition roots is close to realist school in international relations. During the history reaching national interest is known as jumping-off place in the competition of powers in international relations arena, and regarding that reaching geopolitical goals are among the most objective and tangible interests of a state interests, the way of reaching these interests passes from geopolitical competitions path. Strategic relations as relations which are based on cooperation and competition (etymology): the literature review and interview results show that strategic relation is: an spectrum of bi-or-multi faceted relations which can have a cooperation-based or competition-based nature or both of these natures and includes different political, military, economic and military areas and are seen vital due to some causes like “including strategic action”, “activism of strategic actors”, “having strategic consequences” and “occurring in strategic domains”. The word “relation” can include both positive (good) and negative (bad) relations. Hence, the concept of strategic relation includes any interaction which comprise of relations ranging from good to bad based on competition or cooperation provided that it is in connection with national interest or security.

Climate can easily be considered as the most important factor affecting human life and the life of human societies. Perhaps the importance of the climate in human life has never been stressed as much as it is today in macroeconomic-social debates. Nonetheless, even today, many decision-makers of macroeconomic issues are not that cognizant of the importance of this issue. Now, most experts of political, economic, social and environmental issues present climate change as one of the most complex and influential issues in various areas of human life. They also predict that this issue will bring about different problems and consequences for human societies, depending on their economic, social and environmental context, especially in economic terms. Although the issue of climatic fluctuations and their economic impact on human life is not a new issue, the issue has recently taken a different turn. The financial costs incurred by climatic fluctuations will be very heavy and even irreparable for some areas and countries. In total, climate change is expected to impose, either directly or indirectly, significant economic impacts on human societies in various fields – especially agriculture, tourism, energy, human health, labor productivity, employment, economic growth, rising poverty, and increasing immigration, among others. However, the economic impact of climate change will not be equal and alike the world over. In other words, for some regions, climate change can be considered as a geo-economic opportunity and economic advantage, especially in the world economy and economic relations; in contrast, climate change for many regions and developing countries with very hot and dry weather is a geographical and economic crisis and bankruptcy. Due to the importance of the subject, this article tries to study the economic effects of climate change through a descriptive-analytical method. The issue is studied due to the fact that the literature of climate change in the Persian language is scarce; as well, from the climatic and economic point of view, Iran is one of the most vulnerable areas for climate change.

Migration is deemed to be one of the most important dimensions of socio-economic development. Nowadays, however, it has turned into a complex issue for both the origin and destination communities of migrants. The issue rises due to the high level of migration and population movements between different geographic, economic, cultural and social areas. Consequently, spatial anomalies – especially of socio-cultural nature – are formed, and the conditions for the emergence of various types of political, cultural-social and economic crises, among others, have started to prevail. Given the specific territorial and demographic combination of Iran in terms of cultural, ethnic, political and economic, the Iranian society is a prominent case for studying this issue. The findings show that from the geographical and political point of view, migration plays a significant role in the political, cultural, social and economic organization of Iran’s space, particularly in the origin and destination of migration. Given the creation of new cultural and economic landscapes, Iran is prone to the emergence of various security issues and crises in the country. This study has tried to analyze the potentials of geographical and political role of migration, by discussing the issues of geographic distribution of population, the homogeneity-heterogeneity of population and the centralized political structure of Iran. This study also employs a descriptive-analytical method.

The origin of the political-geopolitical role of water should be sought in the nature of human existence. Water is closely related to the primary nature of human (i.e, the biological aspect) and politics to his secondary nature (i.e, the social). The primary nature of human forms the biological aspect of human and his being, and it deals with the biological tools of human such as water, food, etc. Water is, therefore, considered as one of the essential requirements of human life and existence or the biological aspect of mankind. In addition, the secondary nature of human life is shaped in the social realm, wherein various social instruments—including culture, politics, etc.—give human life a social character; consequently, it can be said that politics is one of the essentials of human life. Politics in its truest sense is, nonetheless, shaped in human life within power networks. It can easily be said that the political-geopolitical role of water, before any other issues, speaks about the system of water governance with the purpose of targeted control over water resources as one of the elements and requirements of human existence. A paramount example of this is the political-geopolitical role of water in Israel’s existence. This study has tried to analyze the political-geopolitical role of water in Israel’s existence, employing a descriptive-analytical method. In this regard, it first discusses the historical process of political-geopolitical role of water in the Palestinian territories, and then analyzes the political-geopolitical role of water in Israel’s existence. The findings of this study are discussed under the following themes:The embryonic period of state building in Israel and the thirst for water (1917-1948): in this historical process, the Zionist leaders, with the support of the British government and with the previous informations to the Palestinian territories, tried to predict and design the borders of Israel so that all the water resources of this territory would be placed within its borders.
The period of Israel’s independence and the water nationalism (1948-1967): after independence and experience of the 1948 war with Arabs, Israeli government adopted a number of important laws in the framework of a nationalist approach, including the use of second-class citizen law and the Statute Act. According to these racist laws, the Israeli government’s water policies against Palestinian groups were nationalized; in other words, water nationalism, water racism or water apartheidapproach dominated the Israeli water policies.
The period of domination over water resources in occupied territories (1967-1991): this period can be described as the period of colonialism and the exploitation of water (the period of political-geopolitical domination of water resources) in Palestine. This period begins with the Six-Day Arab-Israeli War (Water War) in 1967, expressing the hydro-political-geopolitical ambitions of Israel (especially the dominance of the Golan Heights) in domestic and foreign policy.
The period of targeted diplomacy for the maximum use of water resources (after 1991): the period of the establishment of a new water order in relations with Arabs on the basis of water diplomacy, with the aim of controlling water resources, in which the various Israeli conditions for negotiating the use of water resources clearly reflect a targeted diplomacy in Israel’s domestic and foreign policy for the maximum use of available water resources. The study of this political-geopolitical mechanism shows that after the establishment of the state of Israel, drawing on various way, Israeli leaders sought to capture the water resources (the arteries of Israel’s existence) in the Palestinian and its surrounding territories. These ways include, among others, the idealization of the subject of water, the ideological approach to water, the psychological attitude to water, the definition of the development entity by water, the definition of the process of socializing by water, creating water crisis and hereby deepening the psychological-nationalist dependence on water, and also promoting the spirit of resistance among the Jews, creating the sense of place belonging through water nationalism, water racism and water apartheid, securitizing the water, use of force, threat, warfare, occupation, the expansion of Jewish areas, water exploitation, water theft, targeted role playing in the peace talks. This water (hydropolitical) monopoly and exploitation in the political-geopolitical cycle of Israeli-Arab relations (geography of power) is considered as significant features of Israel’s domestic and foreign policy. Undoubtedly, the identity and existence of every nation is firstly considered as the geographical-political essence of the territory. This identity and existence for each human group in every territory usually takes shape in view of a series of material and spiritual factors (warps and woofs of nation-building), and through a difficult process. This issue is also clearly evident in the mechanism of the existence and identity of Israel. Given the debates, it can be argued that the existence and identity of the state of Israel is limited tothe existence of water resources and control over it. In other words, it is easy to see water as the essence of the political geography of the dry and violent Palestinian/Israeli territory. However, this does not mean the negation of life in the difficult water situation in this geography; the existence of water resources has another meaning for the Jews. They did not experience living in a difficult climatic or geographic situation. From a psychological-political point of view, no factor could play an influential role as water among Jews in the creation of the sense of place belonging. When it comes to the existence of the state of Israel, water as the source of human life plays the role of blood in the human being in the mechanism of creating psychological connections. Water for immigrant Jews in the dry and violent land of Palestine/Israel (their holy homeland) created the ideal geography and territory of Zionist leaders—both psychologically and in a political mechanism.
Therefore, the existence of the state of Israel (the Jewish homeland) boils down to the mechanism of the will and desire of the Zionist leaders to establish the nation and the state of Israel. In fact, the iconographic structure of the existence of the nation of Israel was developed by the Zionist leaders; and the very essence of Zionist thoughts and ideals is linked to the geo-spiritual factor of the water. On this principle, water can be regarded as the most important feature of the existence and identity of the Zionist state. In terms of geographical-political realities, water, as a symbolic geographical factor, takes geographical-political nature in connection with the essence of the territory and nation of Israel. It gives identity to the nation and state of Israel through a difficult political-geopolitical mechanism in the political approaches of the Zionist leaders in the framework of idealization of water, water nationalism, water racism, water apartheid, water monopoly and colonialism, water imperialism, the definition of development on the axis of water, the securitizing of water, to name but a few. In other words, water can be said to have a powerful hydro-political influence on the existence and identity of Israel through a dynamic iconographic role (internal convergence) and circulational (autonomy and existential legitimacy in the outside world).

INTRODUCTIONGeographical space of Iran, in spite of geographical and human diversity and its large extent, is managed in the form of a unitary and centralized political- administrative structure. However, the unitary political-administrative structure is (Theoretically) desirable for countries that made up a homogeneous nation and have fewer spatial (geographical-human) Plurality and differences. Moreover, achieving sustainable development is at the forefront of the goals and plans of any state, and development in its common concept should include the equal and relative development of territorial space in all economic, political, cultural and social dimensions. In this regard, experience has shown that the use of the unitary and centralized political - administrative structure as executive mechanism of the country in the geographical dimension and political management of space has led to the formation of unequal power geographies (the evacuation of opportunities and means of power from the periphery - Especially ethnic areas - and their concentration in power centers), which is clearly seen in the development of topography of Iran geographic space on both a national and a regional and local scale. According to this, this paper, with studying the political, economic and cultural dimensions of development in Iran, tries to examines and analyze the effects of centralization on the formation of regional inequality in Iran.
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORKCentralization is a form of political-administrative organization, in which centralization of power and the non-assignment of authority to lower levels of territorial- administrative division cause to make misunderstandings and disproportionate expectations with environmental-geographical capacities and thus the formation of spatial inequality. Usually, these spatial inequalities can be found in: the imbalance between the public and private sectors, due to the excessive body of government’s involvement in affairs and the marginality of local and popular capabilities; sectional inequalities, for example, between services, agriculture and Industry; Social inequalities, for example, between different urban and rural areas; geographical-population inequalities among different regions of the country; Inequalities between different dimensions of development, ie, the unbalanced backwardness and improvement of development in various political, economic, cultural and social dimensions; Economic inequalities, for example, the gap between the modern and traditional sectors of the economy, between the income levels of different population groups; regional inequalities, such as imbalances between marginal areas and development poles; as well as inequalities in development geography, including the imbalance between population and resources / available opportunities, saturated spaces, capacious spaces, pristine and forgotten spaces / ie, abandoned spaces, or, in other words, the areas of interest and neglected spaces.
METHODOLOGYThe method of this research, based on its theoretical nature, is descriptive-analytical, and for collecting research findings, library resources are often used. Also, in order to better understand the issue, the level of development or spatial inequalities between the provinces of Iran during the years 1986, 1996, 2006 has been studied, And in general, evaluating a set of different indicators in the political, economic and cultural sectors and according to the resulted from the statistics available for each province, the status of each province is identified in the framework of descriptive maps in terms of political, economic and cultural development at the level of Iran, as well as of calculation of the integrated development of the examined indexes.
RESULTS & DISCUSSIONIn this paper, the spatial inequality is considered as the difference in development leves between different regions of Iran. This paper examines the issue of spatial inequality in Iran in three areas of political, economic, and cultural development in relation to the effects of the political uitary system and centralization. As, the study and analysis of the findings of this paper shows that despite the diverse ethnic, religious and ecological-geographical attributes in Iran, in the unitary and centralized structure of Iran, assuming homogeneous country's space (especially cultural); use of the single law for the whole country, uniform implementation of laws in the country on the basis of the homogeneous geographic space and the nation; centrality in the process of planning and budget and expenditures of the country (especially economic); regulation and control over all institutions and organizations under central government; applying political decisions and legislation in the center; ignoring geographical differences in national policies; establishment of a top-down stream of rule and the role of local institutions under the control of the central government in all political, economic and cultural spheres have led to the formation of unequal geographies of power (the evacuation of opportunities and means of power from the periphery - especially the ethnic areas - and their centralization in power focuses) in Iran, and the current process continues, despite the relative and very low adjustment.
CONCLUSIONS & SUGGESTIONSAccording to the results of this study, the origin of many of the spatial problems in Iran must be sought in the nature of this structure (Centralization). So that, this structure can be regarded as a painful disease and the greatest problem of spatial structure and spatial organization process (political-economic-cultural) in Iran. This clothing has sewn for the territorial body of Iran in the Persian Constitutional Revolution Era through developing of a political Centralization aimed at establishing political unity in Iran, and is still the only political, economic, and cultural clothing of Iran spatial structure. Of course, today's in Iran, the structure of the Islamic Republic of Iran is not legally centralized in nature, since its constitution opened the way out of centralization and the constitution of Iran offers a great capacity and capabilities to escape from this painful disease and resolve spatial inequalities are present in Iran's geography, and indeed, very geographical-ecological realities of Iran are considered in the constitution., especially useing the geographic knowledge and insights. Thus, apparently, the origin of the continuity of the centralization clothing on the geographical body of Iran, from past to the present, can be sought in the lack of geographic knowledge and insight in the nature of macro and micro decision-making, and in other words, the type of operation of the Iranian space management system. However, centralization is a fact of Iran spatial structure that can not be denied by any means. Reality which even now has become a dominant paradigm in the eyes of the government, the academic community, and public opinion in Iran, and apparently there is simply no way out of it.

Political system - a centralized system, the system of administrative Iran during the Pahlavi in the Iranian leadership And since this period, with the arrival of a new civilization, its place in the major cities of The capitalist system don and on the other hand to implement its goals requires a strong central government that can make your programs These issues are the focus of a good run of strong investment and services in the major cities and the concentration of power in the hands of the government and Finally, the formation of a centralized system office. Given that the focus of the decisions in all matters (national and local) By adopting a single political and administrative center, and runs the planning and management in structural terms No social ground - political Instead vehicle development means in practice in the state and is focused on the material aspects of national development. In this structure, management and development planning, rather than a major impediment to development. Therefore, efforts should be grea To be fertile ground for the comprehensive participation to decentralization Addressing these challenges requires a change in attitude to the urban management structure As strengthening local governance and community participation and integrated management and the division of power from top to bottom And changes in the structure of the system from the bottom up to the surface individually according to Talents and limitations the development and planning. What is the focus and emphasis on the affairs of the lie It results presented as a paradigm in the management of cities using the urban good governance in which government, citizens and Private institutions can pay to participate in a current horizontal and More details.

According to results of this research, the main geo-economical feature of Iran’s Trade relations with CIS during years (1380-1391) is the complete leading of Iran imports, the dominance of the Non-dynamic trend of the trade relations, the place falling of the most CIS in the field of Iran’s export and reciprocally their place enhancement in the field of Iran’s import. Indeed, despite the causal elucidation to the enhancing of the mutual trade relations due to economic-geographic realities, now according to spatial analysis of the Iran trade relations with CIS, current trend in the different parts of mutual trade relations does not have a suitable geo-economical and spatial balance. Even sometimes this trend is not in common with geographic realities and geo-economical complementary principle not poses in mutual trade relations. So, according to results of this research, the geo-economical balance of relations is quite opponent advantageous and apparently the Iranian geo-economical influence area in CIS is limited. Indeed, the contraction on the geographic area of Iranian economic power in CIS, and eventually the decline of its economic competitiveness power in the geo-economical equation of this region is a simple geo-economical explanation of these relations.

Aras Free Trade and Industrial Zone, attributed as one of the six viatal gateways for Iran's local and national economy to seek co-linkeage with global economy, is an output action of various systems in various spatial scales. In other words, this trade and industrial unit as a geographical structure, has its evolutionary trend commanded by systems that organize it intrinsically (in local scale) and extrinsically (under the impacts of other spatial scales) though it is differentiated in the form of one of the structural-functional component of space and its site is defined and determined in space. It appears that the construcuration of Aras Free Trade and Industrial Zone in the space of dependency is overshadowed by the functionality of other power centers located in the spaces of engagement that acts in wider geographical scales. In fact, based on what was previously mentioned, the current research carried out in descriptive-analytical research method seeks to explain the spatial scales influential in the geographical structure and system of Aras Free Trade Zone for which a conceptual-theoretical framework of three-layered global, national and local scales, suggested in World Systems Theory by Peter Taylor in coalition with various spaces of dependency and spaces of engagement, were applied to analyze the status quo. Therefore, according to the findings of this research,the spatial scales influential in the evolutionary trend of Aras Free Trade Zone apparently is more varied than levels of triple geographical scales suggested in World Systems Theory. Indeed, besides threats and opportunities of capitalistic global economy in the widest scale, i.e. global scale, the ideology of nation-state in national scale, i.e., the macro-views of Iranian statecraft men and the impacts of the space of dependency in local scale, i.e., the site and location of Aras Free Zone in Jolfa, the action of two regional (sub-national) scales in North-Western Iran and geopolitical and geo-economical advantages and fixed of Southern Caucasia in regional (supranational) scale are also influential as well as effective in the spatial organization of Aras Free Trade - Industrial Zone.

Aras Free Trade and Industrial Zone, known as one of the six vital gateways for Iran's domestic economy to link with global economy, is an output action of various systems in the various spatial scales. In other words, this trade and industrial unit as an economic and spatial structure has commanded by systems which organize it, intrinsically and extrinsically, and seems that the construction of Aras Free Trade Zone extrinsically is the output of specific interactions with the surrounding regions, especially the South Caucasus. Therefore, for this free trade and industrial zone the South Caucasus is one of the most important areas of influence and operation in the transit and trade relations. In particular, this free trade and industrial zone has very high potentials for strengthening cooperation with this region, because of its specific location in the vicinity of the South Caucasus. The research methodology adopted here is descriptive- analytic. Data gathering procedure is based on library findings and official data. Data analysis will be done using qualitative and quantitative analysis methods, and conclusion will be done using the two methods. The geo-economic importance of the South Caucasus in economic development of Aras Free Zone refers to the strategic location of this region as a communicational axis. This position has a special strategic potential to link together Aras Free Zone and peripheral cultural- economic dynamics. Another issue related to the geo-economical importance of the South Caucasus in order to economic development of Aras Free Zone refers to geo-economic position of South Caucasus.South Caucasus, despite experiencing a period of economic instability after independence, because of quite specific geographical-political situation especially ethnic-territorial conflicts, has great economic potentials especially in the energy sector (Azerbaijan), energy transfer and dependence on energy resources, rich agricultural potential, rich potential for deepening tourism relations, industrial facilities (although old but restored) including petrochemical, chemical, machine building, The gradual eliminating the state-based economy, strengthening the economic activity of the private sector, joining to the free market economy, participating in international agreements of energy, becoming as the new center of foreign investment, economic recovery in the context of the international financial supports and support of European states, international competition in economy - trade market of the South Caucasus, South Caucasus’s new economic prestige in the financial markets, particularly the international energy markets, the clear economic outlook for the South Caucasus in case of withdrawal of geographic-economic isolation by deepening domestic and international economic integrations with the peripheral and abroad, neighboring spaces role as the most important communicational channel of the world economy with this region and geo-economic complementary in the trade ties are the advantages of this region which can easily be used in order to economic development of Aras trade-industrial zone. The research scope was to explain the geo-economic importance of the South Caucasus in promotion of economic development of Aras free Zone. Creation of Aras free Zone as a commercial and industrial structure is formed and developed significantly in the mutual interaction with the surrounding spaces, features, capabilities and spatial - economic potentials of the surrounding spaces and even the special nature of spatial interactions in surrounding spaces. So, the South Caucasus is the most strategic space around Aras Free Zone that its importance can be explained in the construction and economic development of Aras free Zone, clearly.Therefore, according to the results of this research, strengthening these collaborations can be considered as a good opportunity to improve the economy of Aras Free Trade and Industrial Zone, because of the following advantages: strategic location of the South Caucasus to link to the international trade markets, the opportunity of use of good potentials of the dynamic emerging economies of the South Caucasus.

City councils together with village councils are the base councils for high-ranked councils. There are a great number of shortcomings and defeciencies for the function of city councils at local government level. One of such problems is the performance of the administrative decentralization principle in the city council. The principle which its performance is relevant with the governing political system. The present article has studied the pathology of the city council relation with the political system. Definition of the features for administrative decentralization. The dominant view point in pathology study is the relationship of the city council with the political system. This study, from the objective point of view is a functional type and from the nature and method is a descriptive- analytical one. The ordinary laws of the city council, implementation by laws of the city council and other high-ranked laws and plans were analyzed. Based on the research findings, city council is faced with some problem in 5(five) dimensions as the following: (1) the legal position of the city council in the constitution and the laws for developmental plans of the country, (2)) elections of the city council members, cancellation of membership and dissolution of city council, (3) legal personality of city councils, (4) budget and financial resources of the city council-Municipality, (5) the authorities and independence of city councils in relation with the state organizations and offices is weak. The ambigious and unclear view of the Constitution to ward the Islamic councils in general and city council as particular has caused different interpretations based on the time and existing conditions about the position of city councils. The unclear approach of the Constitution and the interpretation of high ranked foundations and the votes of legal and judicial foundations had a negative effect on the principles of city council decentralization.

In the first place، the trade-economic relations between countries require to supplementary contexts and fields. The supplementary contexts and fields act in the strengthening of economic relations as the main container of the trade-economic relations between countries. The trade-economic relations of Iran and Azerbaijan also are not exempted from this. In the economic relations between Iran and Azerbaijan have different geopolitical specifications including the historical، cultural likenesses and geographical dependencies as the main configuration of complementary contexts. However، according to the evidences، the present process in the bilateral economic relations is not satisfactory in comparison to economic relations of Iran’s regional rivals with Azerbaijan. In other words، the economic relations of the parties are suffering from some geopolitical obstacles. Thus، the question is that despite the geographical and geopolitical dependences or very fertile environment for deepening the relations between Iran and Azerbaijan، what are the most important geopolitical reasons for the weakness in the economic relations between the parties? With respect to theoretical foundations، the actual method applied in the present research is analytical-descriptive. Library، internet and raw statistical data have been used for data collection and indexing. This research has been done in two different and completely interrelated sections. The first is that the economic potential of Azerbaijan، the strategic-economic importance of this Republic in the Iran’s North geopolitical axis and especially the current trends in the economic relations of Iran with Azerbaijan (in this research، statistical data related to current trends in the trade relations between Iran and Azerbaijan were obtained from the Tehran Chamber of Commerce and After the necessary calculations in the form of the analyzed statistics used in the context of the research). The data were reviewed and analyzed and then، in the next section of research by descriptive - analytical focusing on the differences between Iran - Azerbaijanon the Caspian Sea legal status، the political - geopolitical consequences of Nagorno-Karabakh crisis، opposition on the nationalist approaches (Turkish - Iranian) and strategic nature of Azerbaijan''s relations with the U. S. and Israeli have been studied and analyzed as the main geopolitical factors of weakness in the bilateral economic relations or the most important geopolitical obstacles against the strengthening of the bilateral economic relations. The nature of geopolitical factors of weakness in economic relations between Iran and Azerbaijan are so complex that each of them is easily influenced by negative feelings of the parties against each other. In fact، aside from the common religious identity (Shiite identity) between Iranians and Azerbaijanis، in front of Shiite identity and nationalism of Iranian state، Azerbaijani state is recognized by secular identity and Turkish nationalism. These affect subsidiary issues causing a geopolitical hostile negative mentality in the national attitudes of Tehran - Baku against each other. According to the evidence، the bilateral economic relations are somehow a victim of the same geopolitical hostile space. Among these، in one hand، Baku claims that along with the continuation of Nagorno-Karabakh crisis، deepening of Iran’s relations with Armenia are against the Armenian occupation policies in Nagorno-Karabakh and the kind of nationalist degrading attitude towards Azerbaijan''s independence by some of the Iranians as well as the nature of the relations between Baku and the West or Israel are the greatest threats to the independent existence of Azerbaijan state. In front، Tehran also claims that the increased presence and influence of Israel and the West in Azerbaijan Republic as well as the reflection of Baku Turkish nationalism on the North West of Iran is completely in contrast with the interests and national security of Iran. These claims with deep disputes in determining the legal status of the Caspian Sea and its side issues has changed the general trend of mutual relations، especially in trade-economic field as the kind of mentality is quite negative. The mentality has not produced anything other than political disintegration between Iran and Azerbaijan and consequently weakening of the economic relations between the parties. It may also establish a deep geopolitical distance in the nature of Iranian economic relations with Azerbaijan relative to those with other regional competitors، especially Turkey. According to the results of this research، the general process of relations between Iran and Azerbaijan، particularly the economic relations of the parties، are engaged by important geopolitical obstacles. In other words، the economic relations between Iran and Azerbaijan are suffering from some geopolitical obstacles such as the problem of the Caspian Sea legal status، the political-geopolitical consequences of Nagorno-Karabakh crisis، contrasting nationalist approaches of the two parties and strategic relations of Azerbaijan with US and Israel. Although in this process the political obstacles are periodical، but because of the more stability in geopolitical obstacles، they are playing a major role in weakening or stopping of the economic relations growth between the two countries. In general، given the discussion on the geopolitical weakness factors in economic bilateral relations or geopolitical obstacles on the economic relations، now، it seems that the best way to reduce the obstacles and the subsequent return of economic confidence in the relations is the formation of a scientific and absolutely impartial committee with the participation of experts in history، economy and international relations of the two countries. to the committee are to study the bilateral relations and the resources of strengths and threats of the relations and common strategic - economic interests and review of the documents of parties.، This may contribute to a peaceful national - strategic - economic relations in interests for mutual understanding on the weakness and strengthening factors in bilateral economic relations. Hence، it is necessary that both the states have agreed to common principles as the basis of commercial - economic transactions to make decisions for the future.

Although Turkey is one of the first countries recognized Armenia's independence in 1991, but in this two decades, weakness is quitly sensible in mutual relations or in more correctly words is not any directly relations between the two countries. in fact, Due to the effects of this hostile relations that have been strogly affected national policy of the two countries particularly Armenia, Eventually Turkey and Armenia after many yers of conflict and controversy, According to own special strategic aims decided to start a new round of collective cooperation in South Caucasus with normalization of mutual relations. Although So far these efforts have been ineffective and now the normalization process is suspended, but is no doubt that this process and normalization of mutual relations will be with its special geopolitical effects in region that study of them can to demonstrate a outlook of regional and international relations in South Caucasus. Thus, in this paper will be analysed the geopolitical effects of normalization of Turkey and Armenia relations. The actual method applied in this paper is analytical-descriptive as well as statistical. For data collection and indexing, library and internet have been used. Moreover, in analysis of Turkey’s commercial relations with in South Caucasus countries, because of lack of access to new resources, the statistical analysis of paper is based on data from 2003 to 2008 that these statistics are taken from the UN website. In this paper, meantime historical study and analysis of the relations between Turkey-Armenia, normalization process in mutual relations as well as study the important factors influencing the relations between the two countries, the political-economic effects of normalization in Turkish-Armenian relations to be analyzed in terms of geopolitics. This Studies and analysis is showing that despite the very important obstacles of normalization process in Turkey and Armenia relations, According to geopolitical realities of the region, mutual relations can create different opportunities or challenges in this very complicated geopolitics. According to the results of this research, if the national interests of other countries in the region be considered in the normalization process of relations, improving relations with Armenia will be useful for Turkey. In other words, ignoring the interests of other countries in the path of normalization of relations will be with the loss of Turkey mutual interests in its relations with Azerbaijan and Georgia. View of influential powers in the region Also, potential consequences of improved Turkey-Armenia relations is accompanied by its own complexity. With Improving of Turkey-Armenia relations may be seen kind of influence balance among powers are in the region.

Political geography and geopolitics of Tehran metropolis is full of historical and political experiences of Iranian nation. This city has acted as the heart of Iran and the main base of the country in all political، economic، cultural، and social dimensions and even military and security affairs for more than two centuries. Perhaps when Tehran was selected as Iran’s capital city، one might not have thought that this city، at least for a long period even after the change of state structure and regime of Iran، would remain as Iran’s capital city. Accordingly، review of the political history of this city during its political life، shows that during the last two centuries، vital key of survival of Iran lies in the political centrality of this city. However، in accordance with the realities of the Iranian political geography، it is not acceptable that Tehran’s politics would be stable forever. In general، the main purpose of this paper is the study and analysis of Tehran’s role as a power center in Iran’s political geography structure and political organization of its space.