Identity Orientation in Saudi Arabia's Foreign Policy and its Regional Implications

The identity of actors is an important factor in shaping their interests, roles, and behavior. From the constructivist perspective, identities show motivations that help understand certain behaviors. Saudi Arabia has defined its own interests and roles through its specific attributes of identity and its constituent elements. The Saudi rulers' view of the identity of their "self" and the perception of it, as well as the identity of "other" actors, has led foreign policy to adopt different approaches while maintaining the principles. Their goal is to preserve and sustain conservative monarchies, unite and lead the Arab states, foster religious leadership based on a special interpretation of Islam, and continue their ties with the United States. Accordingly, any perception of threat posed by another identity or development in the region that is against these goals will invade Saudi Arabia's foreign policy and create contradictory relations. This paper uses descriptive-analytic method and utilizes constructivist theory to investigate the identity of Saudi Arabia and its effects and implications on foreign policies of the countries in the region and in particular that of the Islamic Republic of Iran.