The Role of Iran and Russia as Regional Powers in the Middle East (2011-2020)

Since the beginning of the Arab Spring in the Middle East, the region has undergone major changes, with regional and transnational powers shifting their foreign policy orientations based on their national interests. Meanwhile, Iran and Russia, as two major players, have focused on these developments. Therefore, using this Kinderman's Neorealism theory, the authors of the article seek to answer the question of what was the role of Iran and Russia in the Middle East region. The main hypothesis is that given the geopolitical developments, the strategic importance of the region, the tensions between Iran and the US in the Strait of Hormuz, the recent withdrawal of US forces from Syria, Iran and Russia as Regional Powers in the Middle East have played a key role to integrate their interest and deter U.S, in the Middle East. Indeed, the results show that Iran and Russia disagree in some areas, but given recent crises in the region, Trump's withdrawal from a nuclear deal with Iran and the imposition of more sanctions, opposed to unilateralism lead these two countries to cooperate politically and militarily to prevent influence of U.S in the region. The research method in this research is descriptive-analytical.