فصلنامه مطالعات بنیادین و کاربردی جهان اسلام
پیاپی 17 (پاییز 1402)

More than a decade has passed since the concept of smart power to political literature and the sphere of international policy studies. This concept was initially on the agenda of the transformation of power relations at the level of state actors, but due to the growth of the power achievements of non-state actors, the application of this concept expanded. The achievements of non-state actors Hamas and Hezbollah, particularly their deterrence power and success in the 33-day, 22-day, and 12-day wars against the Zionist regime over the past decades, have been considered a turning point for the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Hamas and Hezbollah are two Islamic resistance movements that emerged in the 1980s inspired by the intellectual foundations and ideology of political Islam, Shiite values and the Iranian Islamic Revolution. Hamas in Palestine and Hezbollah in Lebanon, non-governmental actors and regional allies of the Islamic Republic have put their declarative principles on the line in the fight against the Zionist regime and are trying to destroy the Israeli regime and reclaim the rights of the Palestinians from the Zionists. They see lasting resistance as the only way to defeat Israel and the great Western powers in the region Since its inception, the Islamic Republic of Iran has based its foreign policy on hatred of the Israeli regime, opposition to and combating the policy of Western powers, support for liberation movements, especially support for the Palestinian people in the region.
 The purpose of this study was to investigate and explain the software and hardware achievements of Hamas and Hezbollah and its impact on Iran's regional position in the Middle East during 2005-2021.Based on this, the research question is, what impact has hamas and Hezbollah's software and hardware achievements had on Iran's regional position in the Middle East?
The present research method is an explanatory method and the conceptual approach of smart power has been used. The method of collecting information and data was also library and internet.
The concept of smart power entered the political literature and international policy studies in the early 20th century. This concept was initially considered by the policy makers and decision makers of the foreign policy of the United States of America; But gradually it was noticed by other governmental and non-governmental actors. Hamas and Hezbollah are two Islamic resistance movements that emerged in the 1980s inspired by the intellectual foundations and ideology of political Islam, Shiite values, and the Islamic Revolution of Iran. Hamas in Palestine and Hezbollah in Lebanon, one of the non-governmental actors of the regional united Islamic Republic, have put their declared principles in the line of struggle against Israel and are seeking the destruction of Israel and the recapture of Palestinian disputes and farms from the hands of the Zionists, and they are the only solution to overcome and Victory over Israel and the great western powers in the region consider resistance and standing stable. From the very beginning, the Islamic Republic of Iran has drawn its foreign policy policy on hatred and aversion to Israel, opposing and fighting the policy of Western powers, supporting liberation movements, especially supporting the Palestinian people in the region.
The Islamic Republic of Iran defined and considered Israel as an illegitimate and occupying regime and the role of Western powers, especially the United States of America, as interventionist actors causing instability in the region. With the revelation of the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic and its support for the Islamic resistance axis of Hamas and Hezbollah, it faced obstacles and pressure from the opposing actors, namely the regional governments of Saudi Arabia, Israel, and the extra-regional government of the United States of America; But what has increased the intensity of concerns and anger of the opposition actors against the Islamic Republic over the past decades, has been the power gains of Hamas and Hezbollah. So that in the past decades, the software and hardware achievements of the two Islamic resistance movements, Hamas and Hezbollah, have expanded. in a way that has surprised even their opponents.
Hamas and Hezbollah are regional allies of the Islamic Republic and Iran supports them. Iran is located in a region that has been subjected to pressures and disruptions from opposing actors. On the other hand, these opposition actors are worried about the growth of the power of non-governmental actors united in the Islamic Republic. Based on this, in this research, while describing and explaining the software and hardware achievements of Hamas and Hezbollah in the region, we will discuss their effects on the regional position of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Middle East.
The findings indicate that the software and hardware achievements of Hamas and Hezbollah as two regionally allied non-governmental actors of the Islamic Republic of Iran had grown, which had a positive impact on Iran's regional position in the Middle East.

The results indicate that the increase in the smart power of Hamas and Hezbollah has increased the influence and bargaining power and ensured security for Iran against opposition actors such as Saudi Arabia, Israel and the United States in the Middle East.
In this article, we discussed the growth of the achievements of two main and powerful Islamic resistance movements, Hamas and Hezbollah, and its impact on Iran's regional position in the Middle East, and we analyzed and evaluated that the Islamic Republic of Iran has not recognized Israel since its inception and considered itself a supporter of the people. Palestine had defined. Hamas and Hezbollah emerged in Palestine and Lebanon, respectively, inspired by the intellectual foundations of political Islam and especially the Islamic Revolution in the 1990s, and drew their vital principles in the front line against Israel and victory against it.
In the past decades, the software and hardware achievements of Hamas and Hezbollah had grown. Regarding the software achievements of Hamas and Hezbollah, we can mention the increase in popularity of these actors in their country and the region. He also mentioned about the hardware achievements of Hamas and Hezbollah, deterrence power, missiles and drones and their victory against Israel in the past decades. Considering that the presence of these actors has a deep strategic importance, especially guaranteeing security for Tehran in the region, without a doubt, any software and hardware growth of the power of Hamas and Hezbollah is beneficial to the Islamic Republic against the regional and extra-regional actors who wanted to contain Iran and their bargaining power and influence. It has promoted Iran in the region and made any peace in the Middle East inevitable without the presence and participation of Tehran.

Iraq is a country with geopolitical bottleneck, suitable geo-economic position, ethnic and religious diversity, and also under the domination of autocratic rulers throughout history. Ethnic-religious gaps along with cultural-social gaps, especially the activation of historical, ethnic, religious, and tribal faults that became possible after the US military invasion of Iraq in March 2003, created a very favorable environment for militant armed groups in opposition to the central government. The social structure of Iraq, like most countries in West Asia, is a mosaic structure consisting of ethnic groups and different sects. This structure with a diverse and heterogeneous demographic structure was the result of the efforts of extra-regional powers and specifically England to break up the Ottoman Empire after the First World War and form new countries with a mosaic social structure and conflicting identities. The policy of assimilation based on the ideology of pan-Arabism, making the government and the army Arab-Sunni, ignoring other groups and ethnic and religious tendencies, and preventing them from entering the field of political power and cultural development based on ethnic-religious divisions caused the emergence of Kurdish ethnocentrism and Shiism became political This resulted in the formation and strengthening of Shiite and Kurdish groups against the central government and their continuous struggles. Unfortunately, the process of democratization in Iraq showed that the elections and political approaches of the Iraqi people are mostly organized based on identity and ethnicity, and other social institutions are not powerful and comprehensive enough to cover this gap beyond ethnic-sectarian groupings give The authoritarian political structure that has always ruled in these countries has insisted on the rejection of social and political freedoms and the formation of groups, each of which can play a role in the education and growth of the society, and has prevented the process of change towards a multi-vocal society. One of the most important challenges in Iraq after the departure of the occupiers is the competition of ethnic groups and religious groups to take over seats in the parliament and government and important political positions, which has led to a serious competition and conflict between the groups and their supporters, and these disaffected groups, the majority of which are also armed, from time to time launch military operations against each other and cause serious problems for the security of the citizens. Investigating why Iraq fell to the sidelines of the political development process and also the role of influential factors in the lack of political development of this country after the overthrow of the Baath party is the main goal of this research. The effort is to find a scientific answer to this question during this exploration. Among the variables influencing the lack of political development, the internal components of this country, including social, cultural, historical mindsets, political and economic factors, as well as the structure and military and security capabilities of the Iraqi government have a major impact. Since the formation of this country, the social structure of Iraq has been based on numerous ethnic-sectarian divisions, which have appeared at different times despite the efforts of the Baathist regime to define a single Iraqi identity The emergence of politics based on ethnic and sectarian identities as the main way of social and political self-definition and as a result the weakening of social cohesion is one of the main characteristics of the new Iraq, which has a fundamental impact on the security of this country. The rise and spread of terrorism in Iraq has complex dimensions that the main factors involved in it can be divided into two categories: internal factors and external factors On the other hand, the internal factors include the tensions between the Kurdistan Region and the central government of Iraq over the disputed areas, the coming to power of the Shiites and the weakening and isolation of the Sunni Arabs, as well as the tribal fabric of the country of Iraq and On the other hand, external factors include: the emergence and presence of terrorist organizations such as ISIS, the American policy in the fight against terrorism, and the different policies and approaches of the regional powers towards the developments in Iraq, including the main factors in the path of political underdevelopment along with the disorder in Iraq after the overthrow of the regime. They are considered the dictator of BaathIn fact, the hypothesis of this research is that the main factors in the lack of political development in post-Saddam Iraq can be divided into two categories of internal factors: war and internal strife for power and the strengthening of politics based on ethnic and sectarian identities, the tension between the Kurdistan region and the central government and On the other hand, external factors include: the emergence and presence of terrorist organizations such as ISIS, the presence of US-led coalition forces, and interventions in the country's political affairs, etc., in the last two decades, have challenged the process of political development after the collapse of the Baath party in Iraq. Sometimes it has stopped The current research is descriptive-analytical in terms of method As a result, moving in the direction of desirable political development can be a fundamental transformation in the political belief of people and institutions of this country, which presupposes changes in culture, economy, and society. Changes in the mentioned fields become a factor for changes in the political field or its consolidation Providing a suitable solution to get out of the impasse of political underdevelopment and not to deviate from the correct path of progress and all-round development in a country with diversity of ethnic groups, religions and different languages ​​like Iraq, without considering all the effective variables, cannot be useful. The correct path of the political development of Iraqi society requires a fundamental transformation in the political belief of the influential religious institutions and individuals of this country, which are presupposed by changes in culture, economy, and society Instead of turning to Western imitation values, which can increase its vulnerability, the modernist cultural efforts can be focused on the concepts of religious transformation, justice, cooperation, and equality, national unity and harmony, forgiveness, and tolerance, tolerance and Different vision in political and social activities along with attention to the patriotic political elites who everyone accepts should rely on free elections in the way of establishing democracy in order to achieve national unity and integrity  and like them, most of them have religious, ideological and national roots.

Security issues in the Middle East entered a new environment with the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, one of the manifestations of which can be seen in the prominence of the competition between Iran and Saudi Arabia for regional leadership. This competition itself led to the greater complexity of security issues and the occurrence of new security crises, which is important for the security of the region, as well as international peace and security. In this article we will examine the effect of the competition between Iran and Saudi Arabia as the two countries claiming leadership in the Middle East on the security of this region after the September 11 in the framework of the regional security complex theory. The main question is, what effect has the competition between Iran and Saudi Arabia had on the developments of the Middle East security complex? In response to this question, the hypothesis is emphasized that the competition between Iran and Saudi Arabia has increased insecurity in the Middle East and grew the intervention of world powers in the region, which resulted in the formation of domain security crises, and instability. In collecting research data, we use first- and second-hand library sources. In data analysis, using the historical and comparative methods, we describe and analyze the impact of the competition between these two countries on the developments in the security complex of the Middle East after the September 11.
The theory of regional security complex was proposed for the first time by Barry Buzan and Ole Weaver in Regions and Powers book. They believe that while the national and international levels of analysis do not provide a complete guide for the analysis of issues related to regions, therefore, the existence of an intermediate level of analysis will be suitable for this purpose. This intermediate level of analysis tries filling the gap between the national and the international system levels. Based on the definition, a security complex is a group of states whose main security concerns are so interdependent that their national security cannot reasonably be separated from each other. In other words, the regional security complex is mainly formed by patterns of friendship and enmity. These patterns are socially based on historical factors and common cultures of the region. Based on this, the security of any country does not rely only on itself, and one cannot rely only on the national level in security analysis. On the other hand, the global level is also very general and is not sufficient for understanding of national security of countries. Therefore, the regional level is introduced as the appropriate level of analysis in which global and national security influence each other, and the security of individual units and the intervention process of global powers can only be understood through the understanding of regional security developments.
Based on the principles of the regional security complex theory, in the Middle East region, various factors have shaped the relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia at different levels, the most important of which are: oil and energy supply, conflict over regional supremacy, identity subnational and transnational factors such as Shia and Sunni identities and ethnic identities such as Persian, Arab, etc., foreign powers that have influenced or covered security developments in the Middle East, various ideologies such as Revolutionary Shiite Islam in Iran and Sunni Wahhabi Islam in Saudi Arabia. The sum of these factors has made Iran known as a country in favor of creating a stable and local security system suited to the needs of the region, while Saudi Arabia, accepting the presence of foreign powers including the United States, has always considered the security of the region dependent on their support.
To examine the impact of the competition between Iran and Saudi Arabia on the developments of the Middle East security complex, we first examined the existing theories and perspectives on the security of the Middle East, and after examining and criticizing those, we developed and applied the theory of the regional security complex to explain the developments in the region. This theory deals with the analysis of security at four different levels: internal, regional, interregional and global, and for this reason, it has more importance and explanatory power for the systematic review and analysis of security issues in the Middle East. Examining the relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia based on the components and variables of this theory clearly shows that since 2001, competition and even hostility between the two countries has increased and the balance of power in the Middle East has undergone fundamental changes. These changes have caused an increase in the intervention of world powers, including the United States, the European Union, China, and Russia, in the development of the region. The examination of the relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia at the four internal, regional, interregional, and global levels shows that not only the security of the Middle East is not ensured, but also under the influence of the competition between these two countries, the competition between the effective world powers have increased in the region.
In such a situation, to control and manage crises and reduce insecurity in the region, above all, a collective will and mutual understanding must be formed between the leaders and decision-makers of the Middle East countries, especially Iran and Saudi Arabia. The leaders of Iran and Saudi Arabia, as the main players, should put aside their differences and take steps toward convergence and synergy. These actors must, first of all, understand that they have a common destiny. They should reduce their differences through comprehensive dialogue and diplomacy at all micro and macro levels, to achieve mutual understanding of common interests and greater awareness of the benefits of common security. To change the situation, it seems that the countries of the region should focus more on mutual economic interests and collective security than on differences or even shared identities, and they should accept that all actors should have their roles and place in the power and security equations of the region. Naturally, emphasizing establishing and strengthening economic and commercial relations, along with paying attention to cultural and identity commonalities, can become the basis for strengthening political and even security relations. If such conditions are fulfilled, it is obvious that there is no need for the presence and direct intervention of foreign powers in the affairs of the region, and this also helps to solve more issues and changes the security complex of the Middle East from a divergent, insecure and unstable state to a convergent, safe and stable region, not only for the countries of the region but also for the whole world.

The exaltation of any society is possible in the light of social cohesion and the general participation of the members of that society. The purpose of social solidarity is the common commitment of individuals and smaller identity groups to that big "we" that gives people a collective identity in this way both in the subjective dimension and in the objective dimension and at the group levels. and institutions are established. One of the highest levels of solidarity is transnational solidarity, in which people and groups with different nationalities and citizenships find a sense of belonging and common commitment around a single axis. Sociologists also create social solidarity and public participation. They consider society to be caused by factors such as common feelings and balance and harmony between beliefs and values. These factors appear at any level - from local to international - of society, they can cause convergence and harmony among its members and bring social order to them. It is on this basis that different cultural perspectives based on order appear in the world at any time and place.One of the gatherings in which the solidarity and unity among the activists has found an external appearance is the Arbaeen walking ceremony. Despite the presence of different identities together, the activism of the participants in the Arbaeen march is based on shared efforts and strength, which has become the main basis for the creation of an atmosphere of solidarity in the Arbaeen community. The current research seeks to analyze the Arbaeen walking ceremony from the perspective of social solidarity in the context of Shia culture.In the structure of culture, cultural diversity including nationalism and religious differences do not cause political conflict and war. Still, this cultural diversity is turned into an opportunity, and with the strategy of "unity while diversity", while respecting the cultural diversity of countries and curbing the negative aspects of religiosity and nationalism, the advantages of convergence are used to prevent war and violence. Cultural convergence in an identity society is created by several factors. Among these factors is that cultural diversity does not cause political conflict, but rather it is used as a tool for intercultural dialogue, and people, while having distinct micro-identities, consider a common identity as their priority.Analyzes of social solidarity are mostly from a functionalist and instrumentalist point of view, while the internalization of solidarity requires the internalization of common norms and values and one of the elements capable of this is the element of religion and religious identity. This component has played a central role in the Arbaeen walking phenomenon to achieve convergence and order. The phenomenon of Arbaeen walking as a social and popular movement has been an important factor in the formation of convergence and solidarity of Shiites and the consistency of Shiite cultural geography in recent years. In this great event, Shiites from different countries of the world walk the route of Najaf to Karbala on the occasion of Arbaeen the third Shiite Imam. This coherent community in line with the conventional international standards has two distinct features; Its first feature is that it is the largest human gathering in the past and present on earth; So that in this community, a population of over twenty million people are present, which is unique in the history of the world. Another feature of this great gathering is its repetition every year. According to statistics, the number of pilgrims has increased every year, and this shows the continuation of this movement among Shiites.In the phenomenon of the Arbaeen procession, the common religious identity that is the characteristic and commonality of Shiites regardless of ethnicity, nationality, language, and race has created the potential for cultural convergence among them. Convergence, based on which there is the possibility of more and more intercultural interactions. By promoting cross-cultural relations, this Shiite society can take steps towards cultural convergence and strengthen and expand the common Shiite identity. In this case, the Shiite society, while respecting the micro-identities, has used cultural tools to promote the Shiite identity, and the activists of this society can see themselves ready to play a role in a larger space where the necessary facilities are available for them. Therefore, by focusing on why and how the Arbaeen procession affects Shiite culture, the need to pay attention to the category of solidarity and civilizational order in regional dimensions is investigated.  Since the cultural geography of Shia is based on Shia convergence, the main question is whether the basic stem of this social solidarity created in Arbaeen has been effective in the formation of Shia culture. In response to this question, the hypothesis is that the solidarity created in the Arbaini society, because it is at a transnational level with the components of inclusiveness of solidarity, social welfare, economic welfare, security welfare, religion, and based on a civilizational vision in the form of denationalization. It has been shown that it is one of the effective factors in the consistency of Shia culture.In methodology, the statistical population and research indicators will be studied using quantitative methods. This article is practical in terms of purpose, descriptive-analytical in terms of method, and field survey type in terms of data collection. To examine the mentioned hypothesis, after examining the concept of social solidarity, this concept was examined in the topic of transnational solidarity and in six separate components to get out of the abstract state, and in the findings section, in each section to prove the hypothesis of the article, The questions raised from the statistical sample, that is, the participants in the Arbaeen march, are analyzed along with statistical analysis using SPSS.Based on the findings of the research, the Arbaeen community, in addition to emphasizing increasing the level of intra-religious solidarity and the possibility of spreading the Arbaeen convergence model in all Shiite identity groups in the future, the possibility of enjoying a peaceful life between their identity community and other religions and They consider religions to be possible and have emphasized the influence of behaviors based on shared efforts in the Arbaeen procession phenomenon on the social well-being of Shiites. This community believes that the solidarity created in Arbaeen has a positive impact on people's well-being - through the model of economic participation of the type of self-sacrifice - the security of the Shiite world and the disappearance of national borders and the emergence of identity borders through the increase of internal solidarity. will leave religious in general, the analysis of the data shows that the increase in social solidarity in the cultural sector of social forces in the future seems probable, that if this unity is combined with regional order and the strengthening of civilizational factors, it will lead to the sustainability of the cultural geography of the group. It will be social.

Undoubtedly, the Arab unrest in 2010, which started in Tunisia and spread to other Arab states in a short time, is considered a turning point in the political history of Arab countries in the Middle East and North Africa. These measures, which started with the overthrow of some Arab countries such as Tunisia and Egypt, gradually led to civil wars, proxy battles of powerful countries, and even the withdrawal of troops from neighboring countries by some governments, with the extensive and diverse interference of other regional and extra-regional countries. The process of these changes and the resulting results have always been more important for the countries of the southern border of the Persian Gulf, or in more appropriate terms, the governments of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council, which include Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman. Because the commonalities and similarities in various political, economic, and cultural fields among the member states of the Council and the fear of unrest spreading within their political borders have caused the above countries to take measures to prevent such a thing. In the meantime, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, due to various reasons such as size, population, foreign exchange earnings, inherent characteristics of leaders, and regional competition, seek their desired changes in the context of regional trends more than others. These two countries, in addition to the deep commonalities and sense of brotherhood they have among themselves, are always involved in competition with each other for various reasons, such as maintaining the balance of power, especially on the part of the UAE, the authoritarian leadership of both countries, and territorial disputes left over from the colonial era. includes It is from this point of view that the convergence and divergence between these two countries is important in the shadow of the new developments in the Middle East region.Methodology is always considered a function of the theory used in scientific and research works, on this basis and with the theory used in this work, an attempt will be made to explain the methodology of the present writing to the reader. The category of security is one of the fields of study that, despite a long history for mankind, a significant period has not passed since its systematization as an academic discipline. In this work, according to the use of Stephen Walt's threat balance theory and the need-to-know concepts such as power, size, population, economic capabilities, as well as geography, offensive capabilities and hostile intentions, the methodology of this article is a combination of methods Quantitative and qualitative crosswise. In other words, some areas such as the economy area can be analyzed through quantitative methods of contract analysis and based on this, the security and competitive status of actors can be analyzed. While in some other areas such as social security, and freedom of expression, intentions and behavioral characteristics of leaders cannot be investigated simply and based on quantitative methods; In this case, using the qualitative method and paying attention to the intentions of the actors is more prominent. Considering the political characteristics of the governments of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the simultaneous use of quantitative and qualitative methods leads the readers of the present work to a correct understanding of the relations between these two actors.According to the studies conducted on the intergovernmental relations between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the existence of internal differences between the above countries regarding various regional issues clearly shows that these governments, despite all the political, economic, and cultural commonalities, at the same time in dealing with the issues and The problems that arise in the field of foreign policy have national and sometimes personal implications, which is why they sometimes try to take parallel and even opposing actions. It is worth noting that these measures appear and appear more from the side of the smaller country, the United Arab Emirates, in front of the Saudi government, because Saudi Arabia always considers itself the leader of the Arab countries and expects support from other members of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council. ; It was for this reason that he reacted militarily to the changes in Bahrain and economically to Qatar to prove to everyone that he is not indifferent to the developments in the Arab countries around him, especially the governments of the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council, and that his interference in He considers their affairs as a natural matter and a reserved right for himself. In the meantime, according to the approach they have drawn for themselves in the field of foreign politics, the Emirati rulers are always trying to maintain their independence and balance of power against this larger government while accompanying the Saudi government in various regional issues, in addition to protecting themselves from The flames of anger of the Al Saud rulers also promote their national and family interests, which is evident in the UAE's behavior in Yemen and diplomatic relations with Iran and Syria.The new order of West Asia, which is the result of the great changes caused by the Arab events of 2010, showed more than ever the continuity and intertwining of the Arab states of the region, especially the states of the Persian Gulf. These governments, which have come together in the framework of a regional organization such as the Persian Gulf Cooperation Council, led by Saudi Arabia and with the support of the other pillar of the council, the United Arab Emirates, are sensitive to the spread of waves of Arab unrest to the territories under their rule and any movement in this direction They have suffocated sperm. This cooperation, which has been established over the years and especially between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, is more than anything due to the sharing of their broad interests in regional dimensions. Regardless of the inherent characteristics of their ambitious leaders, both the Saudi and UAE governments have converged on various issues such as the unrest in Bahrain, the war in Syria, and the battle in Yemen due to the sense of competitiveness with each other and the need to balance power against Iran. However, during this period, they have diverged and split, especially concerning the manner of diplomatic relations with Iran and Bashar Assad's government in Syria, as well as how to manage the war in Yemen. Of course, it should be noted that the role of the United Arab Emirates in the emergence of divergence with the Saudi government is more colorful because maintaining the balance between the two powerful countries of Iran and Arabia on both sides of the Persian Gulf, as well as maintaining independence and achieving special political-economic interests in the pursuit of regional issues It is of special importance for the Bin Zaid family in the UAE.

The security structures for any country are considered as basic priorities for the survival of that country and the efforts of the governments are to create, manage and properly maintain these structures. The important elements of this structure are internal and external, and sometimes attention to the inside causes neglect of external threats. Considering that the origin of many threats is foreign, therefore, the emergence of neo-Talibanism in Afghanistan is also considered a foreign threat.
The security structures for any country are the basic priorities for the survival of that country, and the government's effort is to create, manage and maintain these structures in a proper way. The important elements of this structure are internal and external, and sometimes attention to the inside causes neglect of external threats. Considering that the root of many threats is foreign, the emergence of neo-Talibanism in Afghanistan is also considered a foreign threat. Historical friendships and hatreds, such as specific issues that cause conflict and cooperation, play a role in the formation of the comprehensive set of fears, threats and friendships that define a regional security group. Various variables such as history, culture, religion and geography affect the patterns of friendship and enmity (Buzan and Waever, 2009: 61). Due to its proximity to Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran is affected by internal developments and the actions and reactions of regional and international actors related to it. Considering the situation of Afghanistan in the last few decades and turning it into a bankrupt, weak or transitional country in the international arena, the negative effects of the developments will definitely be more. Political instability, foreign interventions, including the occupation of this country in the late 1980s, long internal wars, political differences caused by nationalism, power-seeking by factions and commanders, the emergence of the Taliban, and the intervention of foreign countries under the pretext of preventive war and carrying out neoliberal policies in this country, including The three-decade developments of this neighboring country have spread to Iran as a neighboring country. Although the focus of Iran's foreign policy in the last three centuries has been on its western borders, but practically this country has suffered significant injuries from its eastern borders; In such a way that after the division of the subcontinent into three independent countries in 1947 and the occurrence of border disputes between India and Pakistan on the one hand and Pakistan and Afghanistan on the other hand, as well as the communist coup in Afghanistan in 1979 and the occupation of Afghanistan by the Soviet forces, civil wars, the emergence of the Taliban , the attack of western forces on Afghanistan and the events after that, Iran has always faced security problems in its eastern borders.
The dissolution of order after the Bonn Agreement and the triumphant return of the Taliban to Kabul indicate a return to the previous situation when the Taliban were in power. Even worse for Iran, the Taliban are now a more organized, well-equipped, and much stronger group than they were in 2001, and the Iranian-backed political and military groups that fought against the Taliban in the 1990s have now almost disappeared from the Afghan political scene (Tookhy, 2022: 2), but in the last year and a half, the world has watched new developments and events in Afghanistan. Although the root of the events in Afghanistan does not end with just one reason, the country was again in the news when Donald Trump started new negotiations with the Taliban in 2018 and finally reached an agreement on February 29, 2020 in Doha, Qatar. With the commitment of the United States to the gradual withdrawal of its forces from Afghanistan and the commitment of the Taliban to prevent the activities of Al-Qaeda in the areas under their control, the developments accelerated. The Taliban, who hoped for Donald Trump's re-election, followed the news of the American elections because Washington would probably fulfill its commitments to withdraw from Afghanistan; But with the victory of Joe Biden and the beginning of his presidency, the events went more and more in favor of the Taliban. Finally, following the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan, the Taliban gradually took over different parts of the country, which can lead to changes in the regional and international order in the future. In this research, we are looking for an answer to the question, what effect does the re-establishment of the Taliban have on the national security of the Islamic Republic of Iran? The method in this article is descriptive-analytical and library and internet resources were used to collect data.
The dissolution of order after the Bonn Agreement and the triumphant return of the Taliban to Kabul indicate a return to the previous situation when the Taliban were in power. Even worse for Iran, the Taliban are now a more organized, well-equipped and much stronger group than they were in 2001, and the Iranian-backed political-military groups that fought the Taliban in the 1990s have now all but disappeared from the Afghan political scene.
The lack of indicators of good governance in Afghanistan has caused that any change in this country, due to a series of commonalities and geographical proximity to neighboring countries, will have a great impact on them and even the region. Developments in Afghanistan over the past few decades, including issues of identity, drugs, foreign interventions, Helmand water resources, etc., have had a wide and wide impact on the security of the region and the Islamic Republic. But the re-emergence of the Taliban with anti-Shiite and anti-Iranian tendencies will pose security risks for Iran. Nevertheless, Iran's goal is to establish stability and security on the country's borders. The main purpose of this article is to examine the effects of the emergence of a new Taliban in Afghanistan on Iran's national security. The theoretical framework of this research is the theory of regional security complex.
Research findings show that considering the nature of the Taliban's totalitarianism, as well as the influence of other countries on it, if this group does not want to share power with other ethnic groups, this will be a challenge for Afghanistan and its neighbors, including Iran. As a result, the Islamic Republic, while accepting international norms and trying to establish order in Afghanistan, cannot wait until its desired model is established in this neighboring country, but it is necessary to take measures to turn threats into opportunities and weaknesses into points.
By consolidating its relations with the Taliban, Iran can greatly reduce the ethnic and religious tensions in the eastern region and strengthen the idea of religious approximation and reduce the conspiracy and abuse of foreign agents and foreign services to use the capacities of the Baloch people and Sunnis of the east. Economically, the presence of the Taliban provides an opportunity for Iran to play a stronger role in the Afghan economy due to its past relations with the Taliban. The most important of this action in the reconstruction of war-torn Afghanistan and deprived of basic economic needs is aimed at increasing the export of goods, especially in the field of construction goods and also road construction, which Iran has good experience in these fields. In addition, the economic boom in this country has led to the return of Afghan immigrants and refugees and will lead to a significant reduction of social damage in Iran.

The Mediterranean Sea has a very important geopolitical position, which has made it enjoy a special place in the structure of the international system. The Mediterranean Sea is called the Mediterranean because it is located between Europe, Africa and Asia and has a very special and unique position. The Mediterranean is connected to the Atlantic Ocean from the west through Gibraltar, between two European and African countries, Spain and Morocco. On the northeast side, it is connected to Marmara and the Black Sea through Turkey and the Dardanelles, and at the bottom, that is, in the southeast, it passes through Egypt and connects to the Red Sea with the 192-kilometer Suez Canal, which is an important part of Egypt's foreign exchange income. Be related to the Mediterranean.Overall, the Mediterranean Sea is a densely populated region with a complex political history that includes many different ethnic groups. This has led to the creation of a complex and fragmented political map. Today, 21 countries with an area of 2 to 2.4 million square kilometers have coastlines in the Mediterranean Sea, including Albania, Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Cyprus, Egypt, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Slovenia, Spain, Syria, Tunisia and Turkey. This sea has large energy reserves, which has caused regional and extra-regional powers to seek to increase their sphere of influence in the Mediterranean (El Rhazi, et.al, 2020: 1). This importance has doubled in the last few years.Since the early 2000s, a new big game has been formed among regional and extra-regional actors over access to fossil energy fields in the Mediterranean. Along with this capacity, discussions about exploration, production processes and resource transfer options have continued. Although the current situation in the region started 20 years ago, the historical process of offshore drilling in the Eastern Mediterranean dates back to the 1960s. During this time, Egypt and Israel have carried out various drilling operations. Also, each of the Mediterranean coastal governments have declared an exclusive and economic zone, 200 miles long, for the exploitation of energy resources in the seabed. Israel, Egypt, South Cyprus, Lebanon, Syria and Palestine are countries that have potential energy resources and natural gas discoveries are being made in the eastern Mediterranean. The most well-known discoveries in the eastern Mediterranean are the Tamar and Leviathan regions, which were discovered in 2009 and 2010; In total, there are 900 billion cubic meters of gas in these two regions. It is worth noting that 35 trillion cubic meters of natural gas have been discovered in the waters of Israel and Cyprus, and there is a possibility of finding another 85 trillion cubic meters of natural gas reservoirs on the coasts of Syria, Lebanon and Palestine (Demir, Tekir, 2017: 4). These two fields were the biggest deep gas discoveries in the world at that time. Later, the discovery of the Aphrodite field in 2011 and the Zohr gas field in 2015 changed the position of the Mediterranean Sea from regional to global. The proven reserves of hydrocarbons and new discoveries in the Eastern Mediterranean may not be comparable to the reserves of Saudi Arabia, Iran, Qatar, Russia and the UAE, which will turn the entire region or any of the countries that own it into a global energy player, but it can play an important role in the global market. especially in Europe; It can also be an important energy transfer pathway. According to the latest estimates, the oil and gas capacity of the Mediterranean region is approximately 5 billion barrels and more than 13.5 trillion cubic meters, respectively (Kavaz, 2021: 4). The discovery of a significant amount of extensive energy resources in the Eastern Mediterranean has turned this region into a multidimensional competitive environment. Europe plans to turn the Mediterranean into one of its main energy supply points, and so far it has taken great steps in this direction.In this research, considering the vastness of the Mediterranean Sea and the variety of commercial activities in it, we want to study the importance of the Mediterranean Sea for regional and extra-regional powers by emphasizing the energy field, and we are looking for an answer to the question that the importance of the Mediterranean Sea for regional powers and What is a metaregion from the perspective of energy? And what is the importance of the Mediterranean Sea in the evolution of the world energy market? And what role does the Mediterranean Sea play in transferring energy to other parts of the world? In this article, we are looking for answers to these questions by using documentary sources and analytical descriptive method. This research is important from the point of view that solving many current disputes or reaching future agreements in the Mediterranean is possible by understanding the importance of energy in the region, and it is possible to draw various regional models in this field, which can ultimately lead to regional cooperation and increasing peace and lead to stability. The necessity of the present research is that almost among scientific researches, the gap of comprehensive study of this issue is felt, which has caused many developments in the Mediterranean to remain unknown to the audience.The Mediterranean is always very important as a strategic area for regional countries and great powers. The Mediterranean is one of the main energy supply areas of Europe, which can reduce Europe's dependence on Russian gas. As a result, both Mediterranean basin countries are looking for European markets and West Asian countries are looking to transfer their gas to Europe through the Mediterranean. According to what has been said, in the past few years, the Mediterranean has become more important and many regional and extra-regional powers are seeking to increase their presence and influence in this area. Reducing dependence on Russian energy, guaranteeing investment contracts for American oil companies and ensuring European energy security are among the most important reasons for the importance of the Mediterranean Sea for extra-regional powers in the energy debate.  Also, for regional powers, becoming an energy hub, participating in energy corridors, concluding multilateral contracts in the field of energy and transferring liquefied natural gas are among the most important reasons for the importance of energy discoveries in the Mediterranean for the countries of the region. With the calming of the internal conditions and the establishment of political stability in Syria and Lebanon, these two countries can also play the role of transit and bring oil and gas from the Middle East to Europe. In the meantime, the Islamic Republic of Iran can play a prominent role in supplying energy to Europe, especially in the current war between Russia and Ukraine.

The Ukraine crisis is one of the historical turning points in the transition period of international relations, which can cause many changes in the international arena due to the presence of many actors in this crisis. This crisis is referred to as the beginning of a new order or the end of a transition period. Although the Ukraine crisis has occurred in Europe, it has involved many regions and actors. One of the most influential regions in the Ukraine crisis is the Middle East. Among the countries of the Middle East region, Iran and Israel, as two strategic actors, have displayed different levels of involvement in this crisis. Iran evaluates the crisis in Ukraine in line with the current changes in the international system, changes that may ultimately lead to alterations in the existing international order and the limitation of major powers, including European countries and the United States in the form of NATO, as well as Russia. Therefore, it is necessary for Iran to play a role in this crisis in line with its national interests and to create conditions of neither war nor peace in Ukraine, or at the very least, ensure that Russia does not lose the war. Iran can play the role of an influential power alongside Russia against NATO, utilizing its strategic and military advantages.In contrast to the Islamic Republic of Iran, Israel has a completely different approach to the Ukraine crisis and evaluates it in contrary with its own interests. Israel seeks to maintain the current international order and the balance of power within this structure. Israel looks for an actor within the framework of the current international system and assesses the changes in this structure, especially in relation to the interests of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Israel aims to preserve the status quo. Consequently, Israel seeks to end the war between Russia and Ukraine and believes that the costs incurred in this war should be borne by Iran. Therefore, Iran and Israel have adopted different foreign policies regarding the Ukraine crisis, taking into account political, security-military, and energy variables.This research employs the comparative method and is framed within the realism theory to answer the question of how Iran and Israel have adjusted their foreign policies in relation to the Ukraine crisis. This article argues that Iran, as an actor challenging the international system, views the crisis in Ukraine as a reflection of changes within the international system and the formation of a new international order, which may limit the power of great powers such as NATO-USA and Russia. On the other hand, Israel seeks to at least maintain the existing structure and the balance of power, supporting it, though the defeat of Russia may be favorable for Israel. Consequently, Iran and Israel have pursued different policies in the areas of politics, military-security, energy, and commerce in relation to the crisis. The level of involvement of Iran and Israel, as influential actors in the international system and the Middle East, as well as their relationships with other relevant actors in the Ukraine crisis, are the main reasons why these two governments have been chosen for investigation in the context of the Ukraine crisis. Therefore, the research is organized in such a way that while examining the crisis in Ukraine, it describes and analyzes the policies of Iran and Israel regarding the war between Russia and Ukraine within three main components.For Iran, the worst-case scenario would be the defeat of Russia, as it could lead to increased pressure, sanctions, and security measures against Iran. Iran aims to prevent Russia's defeat in the war, but it will play a minimal role in favor of Russia's victory. Iran also sees the crisis in Ukraine as an opportunity to expand its comprehensive relations with Russia, which can meet Iran's needs in various fields, particularly in the military and strategic domains. Furthermore, from a national security standpoint, regardless of the geographic distance between the crisis and the Middle East, a conflict between major powers outside the Middle East region is considered favorable for Iran, as it allows Iran to maximize its own interests. In recent years, proxy wars and conventional conflicts have posed a threat to Iran's national security. Therefore, both in terms of security and its level of involvement, the Ukraine crisis will have an impact on Iran.On the other hand, Israel does not view the crisis in Ukraine in line with its own policies and seeks to end the war and establish a ceasefire. The parties involved in the conflict are important to Israel. In terms of security and geopolitics, Israel does not want to escalate tensions with Russia due to the expanding relations between Russia and Iran, as well as Russia's presence in the Middle East, particularly in Syria. This presence directly and indirectly affects Israel's national security due to Iran and its allies in Syria. For Israel, the weakening of NATO and Russia is the worst possible scenario because it would reduce the pressure on Iran and grant Iran more freedom of action in Syria. The best scenario for Israel is the end of the war and the maintenance of the balance of power. In line with this, Israel seeks to maintain its relations with Russia without any tensions. Israel has provided diplomatic support to Ukraine, framing its support as purely humanitarian and informational. However, under pressure from NATO and the United States, and considering the possibility of Iran's increased involvement in the Ukraine crisis, Israel may change its policy, although such a change seems unlikely. Additionally, Israel is dissatisfied that the current costs of the war are being incurred in Ukraine instead of Iran. Overall, Israel adopts a realist policy aimed at maintaining the status quo, while Iran's policy can be seen as driven by the desire to demonstrate prestige.