Geopolitics and the Manifestations of Strategic Rivalry between Iran and Pakistan over Afghanistan (2001-2022)

Iran and Pakistan's foreign policies toward Afghanistan are significantly influenced by the geopolitics of this country. As a result, the research question will be: how has Geopolitics influenced Iran's and Pakistan's foreign policies toward Afghanistan between 2001 and 2022? From the Geopolitics perspective, Pakistan, concerned about India's control over its strategic depth after the Taliban's removal at 2001. Iran, attempted to reduce the influence of its international adversary, the United States of America, in Afghanistan. It was natural that the competition of geostrategy entered other fields, including geoeconomics, in which Pakistan, in the form of a "greater Central Asia" concept, and Iran, in the form of a "North-South Corridor", were trying to connect Afghanistan to the outside world. In terms of geoculture, both countries tried to increase their influence by supporting Afghan groups. This research uses the comparative qualitative analysis method. The purpose of the research is to investigate the role of geopolitics on the foreign policy of Iran and Pakistan towards Afghanistan from 2001 to 2021