Explaining the theoretical model of realistic idealism in the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran based on the statement of the second step of the Islamic Revolution

The statement of the second step of the revolution is one of the documents that have provided the necessary grounds for theorizing about the issues of today and the future of the Islamic Revolution. Numerous issues with the approach of civilization vision in the heart of the discourse of the second step statement have been raised by the Supreme Leader of the Revolution, including the issue of foreign policy and how Iran deals with regional and international issues. The present study intends to analyze and explain the foreign policy issue of the Islamic Republic of Iran based on the theory of realistic idealism in accordance with the text of the statement of the second step of the revolution and to examine the results and application data of this theory. In this regard, first the theoretical foundations of idealism and realism are examined and then the model of realistic idealism is drawn. Then, using the content analysis method of the second step statement and coding foreign policy issues, the characteristics of idealism and realism are calculated. Findings show that although the discourse principles of the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran are consistent with the logic of idealism But the performance, results and outputs of Iran's foreign policy can be analyzed and interpreted within the framework of realism theory, and there is no contradiction between idealism as opinion and realism as practice. The analysis of the statement of the second step of the revolution as one of the late strategic documents in the field of foreign policy confirms this claim and the Iranian foreign policy system can be considered as "realistic idealism".