Iran-Turkey strategies in Iraq after the fall of Saddam

The Islamic Republic of Iran and Turkey, as two regional powers, have long been recognized as the two main rivals in the Middle East. In recent years, Iran-Turkey relations have always been a mixture of interaction and competition. Meanwhile, one of the issues that in recent years has somehow reflected the competitive dimension between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Turkey is Iraq and the political developments in this country. During the political developments in Iraq, the Islamic Republic of Iran and Turkey in many cases took a contradictory approach to the political developments in this country. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to explain the strategies of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Turkey towards Iraq and its political developments in the post-Saddam era. In this regard, the author, using a descriptive-analytical method and a comparative approach, has sought to answer the fundamental question of what approach the Islamic Republic of Iran and Turkey have taken to the political developments in Iraq? The opportunity to answer this question is that Turkey has tried to shift the balance in its favor by supporting Sunni and Kurdish Arab groups. The Islamic Republic of Iran has also tried to maintain the balance in its favor by supporting Shiite and Kurdish groups.