The Revolutionary Developments of Bahrain and Geopolitical and Religious Conflict of Iran and Saudi Arabia

Bahrain is having important geopolitical value for regional and extra-regional powers. For this reason the developments which take place in Bahrain lead to the reactions and conflicting policies from those countries. With the emergence of Islamic awakening movement in Bahrain the countries who are opposing Iran, particularly Saudi Arabia, diverted the people’s attention from just protest movement of Bahraini people and raised the question of Iran’s interference in Bahrain internal affairs. The present article wants to know what are the roots of religious and geopolitical conflict of Iran and Saudi Arabia in relation to Bahrain and what impact these contradictions have had on relations of the two countries after the Islamic awakening?. The paper has concluded that these contradictions have started before the Islamic revolution of Iran and has reached its climax after the revolutionary developments in Bahrain and is still going on. Some of the important roots of these contradictions are Iran’s territorial claim on Bahrain(before the Islamic revolution), the Islamic revolution in Iran, provoking the revolutionary feelings of Shiites in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, the support of Iran for increasing role of the Shiites, the presence of Fifth Fleet Navy of the United States in Bahrain, the formation of Persian Gulf Cooperation Council against Iran playing important role in the region, military intervention of Saudi Arabia in Bahrain, arms race between Iran and Saudi Arabia and designing different scenarios for isolating Iran. The present article by a descriptive-analytical method wants to study the above issue.