مجله رهیافت های سیاسی و بین المللی
سال شانزدهم شماره 1 (پیاپی 77، بهار 1403)

In recent years, there has been a notable trend in Iran's environment, characterized by China's increasing presence and influence in the Middle East, as well as its endeavors to strengthen relations with the Persian Gulf countries. Given America's longstanding presence in the Persian Gulf and its strategic partnerships with Arab countries, China's involvement has significantly contributed to the complexity of regional issues. For instance, Saudi Arabia, the largest Arab country in the Persian Gulf, has expanded its interactions with China focusing on energy, and in practice, China has become Riyadh's first commercial and economic partner.The main aim of this article is to provide a comprehensive analysis of the essential factors and significant changes that have shaped Saudi Arabia's foreign policy towards China during the reign of King Salman. It addresses the following questions: what are the determining elements of Saudi Arabia's foreign policy regarding China in the years after 2015, and how have these factors led to the prioritization of extensive cooperation and a comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries?

Methods and Conceptual Framework: 

To identify and explain the underlying factors behind Saudi Arabia's shift in foreign policy toward China, this study adopts the conceptual framework of Neoclassical Realism and uses an explanatory methodology. Structural realists emphasize the importance of changes in the international system and the balance of global power in shaping countries' foreign policies. However, neoclassical realists emphasize the significance of internal factors in understanding a government's foreign policy. Therefore, a substantial part of this research focuses on investigating the impact of domestic variables on the strategic choices made by the Saudi government towards China.

The findings of this research indicate that the rise of China and its consequences at international and regional levels are the main and independent variables shaping Saudi Arabia's new foreign policy towards China. However, while international factors have a substantial impact, there are also specific domestic factors that serve as intermediate variables in Saudi Arabia's strategies toward China. At this level, several crucial factors contributed to the development of Saudi cooperation with China during King Salman's era. These factors included the capacities of national power, the rise of authoritarianism, unity and consensus among Saudi elites, the emergence of new Saudi nationalism, the centralization of authoritarian development, and evolving perceptions of Saudi leaders regarding recent international and regional transformations.Saudi Arabia and China's relations have shown a positive and steadily growing trend over the past three decades. However, it is during the reign of King Salman that these relations have entered a new stage, known as a comprehensive strategic partnership. This partnership is characterized by increased cooperation in the commercial, economic, and political spheres. The emergence of a new generation of Saudi leaders, led by Muhammad bin Salman, has significantly influenced the transformation of Saudi policies. These leaders possess a deep and comprehensive understanding of international trends and conditions, which has played a pivotal role in reshaping Saudi Arabia's approach. Particularly noteworthy is their realistic understanding of the shift of power from West to East, their pragmatic approach in relations with regional and global actors, and the new definition of national interests.

In the new circumstances, despite the persistence of some uncertainties regarding the overall direction of Saudi Arabia's foreign policy, the continuation of the country's military-security cooperation with the United States remains evident. However, the prioritization of authoritarian development by Saudi leaders is a significant driver that will lead to the continuation and development of Saudi Arabia-China relations in the coming years.

The geopolitical dynamics of the Middle East have always been influenced by the competition among global powers, particularly the United States and China. This study aims to analyze how the US-China rivalry from 2010 to 2022 has impacted Iran's national security. The region's strategic significance and its vast energy resources make it a focal point for these powers, each seeking to expand their influence. Iran, as a key player in the Middle East, finds its security and political landscape significantly affected by this rivalry. The research hypothesizes that the competition between the US and China affects Iran's national security in three main domains: military/security, political, and economic, with both positive and negative impacts.

This research adopts an explanatory method, relying on extensive library and documentary data to dissect the multi-faceted impacts of US-China competition on Iran's national security. The study involves a thorough review of historical and contemporary sources to establish a comprehensive understanding of the geopolitical strategies employed by the US and China in the Middle East and their repercussions on Iran. The analysis is structured to address the competition in the specified domains, offering a detailed examination of each domain to discern the dual effects on Iran's security framework.

The findings reveal a complex interplay of influences stemming from the US-China rivalry. In the military/security domain, the competition has generally been detrimental to Iran's national security. Increased US military presence and alliances in the region pose direct threats to Iran, while China's military engagements offer limited but notable strategic support to Iran, such as joint military maneuvers and arms sales. However, China's broader military relations with other regional actors like Saudi Arabia and Israel introduce significant security dilemmas for Iran. Economically, the US's efforts to isolate Iran through sanctions have been countered to some extent by China's continued economic engagements with Iran, including the 25-year cooperation agreement. Nevertheless, China's extensive economic ties with Iran's regional rivals diminish these benefits and perpetuate the economic vulnerabilities due to continued and even reinforced US sanctions. Politically, the situation is somewhat more favorable for Iran. China's refusal to align with US policies aimed at isolating Iran, such as opposing additional sanctions in the United Nations, provides Iran with crucial diplomatic support. Additionally, China's support for the Assad regime in Syria aligns with Iran's strategic interests in the region, reinforcing Iran's influence in the Levant. However, the growing US-Arab-Israeli rapprochement, facilitated by the Abraham Accords, and the US's emphasis on human rights issues against Iran complicate Iran's geopolitical stance.

The US-China competition in the Middle East significantly impacts Iran's national security. Militarily and economically, the rivalry presents more threats than opportunities, primarily due to US actions aimed at containing Iran and China's balanced approach to regional partnerships. Politically, however, the competition offers Iran some leverage, as China's opposition to US-led initiatives provides Iran with critical support. Understanding these dynamics is essential for Iran to navigate its foreign policy and security strategies effectively amidst the ongoing great power rivalry. This research underscores the need for a nuanced approach in analyzing the impacts of global geopolitical competitions on regional actors like Iran, highlighting the dual nature of these influences across different domains.

This article examines how environmental movements in France interact with their global counterparts and emphasizes the importance of cross-border cooperation and shared responsibility in addressing environmental challenges. Also, by clarifying the transnational dimensions of environmental actions in France, it seeks to highlight the interconnectedness of environmental issues beyond borders and support a transnational and collaborative approach to environmental sustainability. By examining transnational environmental practices, valuable insights are provided into the effectiveness of transnational strategies and their impact on shaping practices of ecological citizenship on a global scale. The main goal of this research is to analyze how environmental movements in France interact with their surroundings, especially in transnational dimensions. Using Andrew Dobson's ecological citizenship theory, this study aims to shed light on the importance of cross-border cooperation, solidarity and collective responsibility in addressing global environmental challenges.

Through a qualitative research approach, this study provides the necessary framework to examine the dynamics, strategies and outcomes of transnational environmental actions in France. The analysis method used in this research is content analysis, which deals with the nuances of Dobson's ecological citizenship theory applied to environmental movements in France and provides a comprehensive analysis of the narratives and discourses surrounding transnational environmental projects. A systematic review of the textual data increases the understanding of how ecological citizenship is conceptualized and implemented in the French context and illuminates the role of communication and discourse in shaping transnational environmental activist practices. By using content analysis methods, it is tried to discover and understand the complex relationships between language, environmental values ​​and collective action in the field of ecological citizenship in France.

This research critically examines the existing literature to understand Dobson's ecological citizenship theory and its relevance in the French environmental landscape. The findings of the research emphasize the fundamental transnational dimensions inherent in environmental movements in France. These movements not only recognize environmental issues that transcend national boundaries, but also support international cooperation to effectively address them. Emphasis on cross-border cooperation, solidarity and shared responsibility appear as key themes in addressing global environmental concerns in the field of French environmental activities. In addition, this research highlights the interconnected nature of environmental challenges and the importance of joint efforts in reducing their impact on a global scale. These findings underscore the importance of strengthening cross-border partnerships and collective action to tackle pressing environmental issues facing both France and the international community. By advocating shared responsibility and solidarity across borders, environmental movements in France exemplify an active approach towards sustainability and environmental stewardship.

This study shows the pivotal role of transnational cooperation and ecological citizenship in the formation of environmental movements in France. Recognizing the importance of international cooperation and shared responsibility, these movements demonstrate a proactive approach to addressing environmental challenges on a global scale. This study contributes to a detailed understanding of ecological citizenship in the French context and emphasizes the importance of cross-border solidarity in fostering sustainable environmental practices.

Striving for freedom, equality-seeking, and breaking the tyranny can be considered the three main components of the recent decade's developments in the Middle East. Since 2010, the countries in this region have faced widespread public protests and have sought to implement extensive changes in their governance to achieve the people's demands. One of the countries where these uprisings occurred on a large scale was Egypt. Following the revolution of January 25, 2011, the previous regime was overthrown and a new regime was established in the light of democratic demands based on the rule of law. One of the active groups in the aforementioned revolution were religious minorities, who actively sought to participate in the revolution and play a significant role in the subsequent state-building efforts. This group's efforts stemmed from the fact that, as minorities in a country with Islam as the official religion, they were inherently deprived of many social benefits and rights. Additionally, the prevailing policies indicated that the Egyptian governments over the years had imposed clear discrimination against these minorities. Therefore, examining the legal norms influenced by the Arab Spring on the legal status of religious minorities in Egypt, which took a more concrete form with the drafting of the 2012 and 2014 constitutions, is an issue worthy of attention.

This paper, adopting a descriptive-analytical approach and utilizing the method of studying library resources, articles, etc., is written to analyze the research topic. Using this method, the present study is looking for an answer to this question: How have the post-revolution constitutions performed in ensuring and guaranteeing the rights of religious minorities?

According to the approach of the present article, it was found that: Firstly, the lack of official recognition of certain religious minorities in Egypt's legal system has not only led to the denial of their identity but also resulted in their natural rights and freedoms being overlooked, effectively removing them from the political and legal spheres. Secondly, the centralization of religious affairs within the state, weakness in executive and functional procedures, lack of easy and effective access to justice, justification of discrimination and violence, establishing an interpretation based on identity of the Egyptian and the Islamic identities, among others, have been influential in the failure to achieve the constitutional goals and the demands of religious minorities for equality in rights and autonomy in the religious domain.

This article, by a pathological analyzing the obstacles to the realization and exercise of the rights and freedoms of religious minorities, makes the following suggestions: Firstly, the Egyptian government must be committed to upholding the philosophy and implications of the constitution not only in theory but also in practice; Secondly, in order to observe the elements of citizenship rights, the necessary and appropriate infrastructures should be designed and implemented, and efforts should be made to assess and enhance them in cooperation with non-governmental organizations; Thirdly, the content of the educational system’s curriculum should be revised and reformed to promote tolerance and altruism; And finally, the right to self-determination, along with all its necessary conditions, should be recognized and respected for religious minorities

Seyyed Ahmad Barelvi is one of the few revolutionary Sufis of the Indian subcontinent who transformed his political thought from theory to practice through jihad and armed uprising. Barelvi's political thought was not unrelated to the crises and disorders of his time. The central issue of this article is the relationship between Sayyid Ahmad Barelvi's political thought and the crises and disorders of his era. The core question of this inquiry is: according to Sayyid Ahmad Barelvi, what were the crises facing the society of the Indian subcontinent at that time, what did he consider their roots and causes, and what was his ideal political order and the solutions he prescribed for overcoming these crises?

This article employs Thomas Spragens' "crisis theory" model as the theoretical framework and research methodology to explain Sayyid Ahmad Barelvi's political thought. Spragens developed his method to uncover and understand the "inner logic" of political theory. According to him, every political theory emerges from the crisis of its time, considering the current state (what is) and the desired state (what ought to be). Spriggans believes that the great art of a political theory is to provide a way to integrate the "what is" with the "what ought to be."

Sayyid Ahmad perceived the political powers of his time as being in conflict with his theoretical foundations and value system as a Muslim. Additionally, the contemporary political systems were acquiring power illegitimately, and the Islamic political order was gradually losing its ability to sustain itself. Therefore, by contemplating concepts such as Imamate, Jihad, and governance, he sought to pave the way for a transformation in the political order and a legitimate transfer of power. This set of efforts came to be known as "Tariqat-i-Muhammadiya" (the Mohammadian Way). Ultimately, although "Tariqat-i-Muhammadiya" failed to establish a new order and implement a legitimate governance based on its politico-religious principles, it was somewhat successful in delegitimizing and discrediting the "right to rule" of colonial and despotic powers. Barelvi was ultimately defeated due to the greed and betrayal of certain Pashtun leaders who disregarded his directives for a principled jihad. Barelvi's concept of jihad entailed a specific understanding of warfare that was incompatible with material goals aimed at collecting spoils. These principles effectively imposed constraints on his fighters, who were primarily from the Pashtun tribes. The Pashtun leaders rejected these constraints, abandoned Barelvi's principles of jihad, and instead focused on accumulating war spoils. The Pashtuns' strong desire for booty created the first rift in Sayyid Ahmad's movement. Subsequently, this rift expanded to other issues, such as the incompatibility between Sayyid Ahmad's orthodox principles and the tribal traditions of the Pashtuns, leading to the failure of Barelvi's movement. Despite this, the ‘Tariqat-i Muhammadiyya’ movement had a significant religious impact on contemporary Islamic movements and notably influenced the Taliban in Afghanistan both militarily and politically.

According to Barelvi, the main crises are categorized as "political" and "religious." He considers the root of these crises to be "shirk" (polytheism) and "kufr" (disbelief). Barelvi's ideal political order involves eradicating polytheism and disbelief, elevating the word of God, reviving the Quran and the traditions of the Prophet Muhammad, and establishing a native Islamic state. His practical solution to resolve these crises and transition from the current state to the desired state involves the continuous implementation of "military jihad." However, ultimately, Sayyid Ahmad Barelvi fails in the execution of his strategies.

One of the most important issues raised by the outbreak of the COVID-19 Pandemic is its impact on political philosophy. The pandemic opened an antagonistic space regarding the existing components of political philosophy and challenge them. In fact, the COVID-19 Pandemic provided a critical platform for questioning the established norms and prompted discussions on the necessity of rethinking and re-evaluating them. The purpose of this article is to answer the fundamental question of how the COVID-19 Pandemic has created an antagonistic space for the elements of modern political philosophy.

The method used in this article is the critical method. Critical theory seeks to develop and expand the understanding and awareness that penetrates beyond surface appearances to the depth of reality in order to increase the power of correct recognition of people, especially the powerless or subjugated classes. The critical aspect of this article allows the author to present the relations emerging from the COVID-19 in human societies as unacceptable and replaceable. This method helps to identify and challenge social and cultural issues in society and is effective in improving and developing human relations during pandemics. The information gathering method is both library-based and internet-based.

Among the most important challenges that COVID-19 has posed to the new political philosophy are the questioning of concepts such as rationalism, humanism and individualism, which have been temporarily challenged by the pandemic. It can be said that this virus embodies the friend/enemy distinction and Schmitt's narrative of the political in the context of the COVID-19 situation presented itself in the form of a confrontation between the coronavirus and humanity. Humanity, once perceived as dominant over nature and the world, has been rendered weak and powerless by the virus. Furthermore, rationalism and scientism of philosophy of modernity which held that humanity, through these principles, could intervene in all matters and solve its problems independently of the external world, have also been brought into conflict by the pandemic. COVID-19 has highlighted the weaknesses and limitations of human reason. Categories such as artificial intelligence have easily been able to fit themselves in the clothes of the enemy of human reason, and as Farid Zakaria points out, during the pandemic, we have come to worship artificial intelligence like a God. Therefore, despite the abundant services of science and rationality to mankind, COVID-19  has reminded us that they still have undeniable limitations and cannot be the sole solutions to human problems.

The danger of COVID-19 highlights the risks of technological manipulation of human and natural resources, using calculative and computational reasoning as a tool for the economic benefit and overall utility of dominant powers. Environmental destruction is an act of violence against nature, leading to humanity's self-destruction through the creation of pandemics that challenge human life. Therefore, attempts to prevent or resolve the riddle of pandemics require something more than the calculative and computational knowledge of modernity.

The fluctuations caused by the depreciation of the dollar along with the imposition of sanctions against countries using the power of the dollar have caused other countries to seek to reduce dependence on the dollar— a process known as de-dollarization. This is especially important for the People's Republic of China for two reasons: on the one hand, to counter the hegemony of the US dollar in international exchanges and transactions, and on the other hand, to  deal with the increasing energy security risks due to sanctions on China's oil suppliers. The purpose of this study is to examine China's actions towards de-dollarization through the establishment of the trans-regional BRICS organization and then to analyze the reasons behind Saudi Arabia's interest in joining this organization.

The research method is trend analysis using time series and seeks to answer the question: What impact does BRICS membership have on the de-dollarization of trade between China and Saudi Arabia? The initial answer to the research question, which is the research hypothesis, is: the mechanisms designed in the BRICS by China will have a significant potential for Saudi Arabia to reduce dependence on the dollar.

Findings indicate that China has become the most important partner of Saudi oil exports during the period under review . In contrast, the consequences of sanctions against Iran and Russia have caused Saudi Arabia to try to reduce its dependence on the dollar. The processes within BRICS, especially trading in yuan on par with gold, have created the necessary capacity for Saudi Arabia to reduce its dependence on the dollar. At the same time, it should be noted that the measures taken by Saudi Arabia to expand cooperation with China are overshadowed by its relationship with the United States. Since Saudi Arabia is deeply integrated into the US-led economic and security framework, it cannot easily reduce its dependence on the dollar. Additionally, There is no intention at this time to abandon currency ties or end the defense partnership with the United States. For this reason, Saudi Arabia's long-term strategy is to develop the ability to conduct transactions in both the dollarized and de-dollarized regions, and to reduce its dependence on the United States while maintaining its position in the world energy distribution.

The most important point about the process of de-dollarization and the efforts of organizations like BRICS, led by China, to counter the hegemony of the dollar is that de-dollarization has never meant abandoning the dollar. Instead, it is an attempt to diversify countries' currency reserves and increase the maneuverability of central banks in international exchanges and transactions. This is why China remains one of the largest  buyers of US Treasury bonds, despite its significant efforts to reduce the scope of the US dollar's power in international exchanges. In parallel, although it is unlikely that Saudi Arabia will be able to abandon the US dollar in the short and even medium term, it is nevertheless developing a broader financial instrument to reduce its dependence. Saudi Arabia has taken important steps such as designing a central bank digital currency, which plays an important role in the exchanges of BRICS members. Despite being in their early stages, central bank digital currencies appear to be a promising new tool to reduce the dependence of the dollar on regional and trans-regional cross-border transactions.

Characterized by its Shiite background and the interdependence of religion and politics in governance, the Safavid government bear some significant similarities to the Islamic Republic of Iran and played an important role in shaping Iran's political and social history. The aim of the present research is to examine the causes of the decline and fall of the Safavid government and to investigate the strategies that could have served as a solution to this decline for the Safavids To this end, after a historical investigation, Resaale-ye Teb-ol Mamaalek (the Treatise on State Medicine) written by Qutb al-Din Nayrizi has been chosen as the textual reference to analyze and achieve the research goal. This selection is of great importance due to Qutb al-Din Nayrizi's religious status and his contemporaneity with the reign of Shah Sultan Hussein Safavid (during whose period the fall of the Safavids occurred), and it can significantly reflect the political and social conditions of that era and elucidate Nayrizi's prescriptions for strengthening the political and social foundations of Safavid Iran and overcoming the state of weakness.

Due to the text-oriented nature of the current research, the authors will use the thematic analysis, which is more applicable to written sources. Accordingly, the materials related to the topic were extracted, categorized and coded. Relying on the stated methodological steps, in order to discover the existing topics of the text of  Resaale-ye Teb-ol Mamaalek (the Treatise on State Medicine), the extraction and coding process of the topics in each section has been done by the researchers. Therefore, using MaxQDA software, categories related to the factors of decline and the strategies to prevent it were marked with the symbols Fa and So, and the coding process was carried out.

In the end, the extracted themes were categorized under two main headings: causes of decline and strategies for overcoming the crisis. Through this process, the influential factors in each of these two headings were identified from Qutb al-Din Nayrizi's perspective, and the position of various factors in his thought was recognized. According to the author of this treatise, if the scholars, as one of the important social groups, are weak-willed, worldly, hypocritical, followers of the Sultan, and inactive, the groundwork for societal decline is laid. Nayrizi also mentions "environmental factors," including widespread famine and foreign territorial expansionism, and "divine trials and traditions" as causes of societal decline. 

According to the findings, it can be concluded that this religious thinker classified the factors of degeneration into the following five categories: factors related to the  public, factors related to scholars, factors related to governance, environmental factors, and also divine traditions; he also classified the solutions to deal with it under four categories: solutions related to the  public, solutions related to the scholars, solutions related to governance, and finally, transcendental solutions or divine aid.