Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

• Mahdi Khanalizadeh ¹
• Hossein Salimi ²

¹ Ph.D Student, International Relations, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran

² Professor, Department of International Relations, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Introduction
After the end of the First Persian Gulf War, the George H. W. Bush administration announced a new security strategy for West Asia. The period from 1993 to 2001 was marked by a policy of encirclement—one of the traditional tools of American foreign policy and a continuation of the Cold War balance-of-power policy—based on the assumption that any change in the region would undermine the stability of U.S. interests. However, this policy not only failed to produce the desired results in Iraq, but also placed the U.S. in a difficult position in terms of regional consequences. The deployment of U.S. military forces—initially regarded as one of Washington’s post–Cold War successes in the Middle East—generated its own antithesis and contributed to the emergence of resistance-oriented military groups.
Literature Review
The regional security complex theory (RSCT) is based on the assumption that the end of the Cold War ushered in a new era of insecurity. This insecurity stems from emerging sectors or areas of action that have become sources of threat. These sectors include the military sector, the political sector, the economic sector, the societal sector, and the environmental sector. Each of these areas can serve as a new source of insecurity within the perceptions of different states and actors (Buzan et al., 1998). According to the RSCT, the world’s sudden shift toward insecurity can be traced to the flawed assumptions and prescriptions of the realist and globalist schools. Realists and globalists, respectively, treat the state and the international system as the only issue or factor of security, therefore, both have overlooked the regional centers where the most significant security dynamics actually unfold. Buzan and Wæver argue that security cannot be understood by examining individual units in isolation; rather, a more comprehensive understanding emerges from analyzing regional security complexes. The security concerns of states within a region are so deeply interconnected that they cannot be meaningfully studied on a standalone basis.
Materials and Methods
The present study relied on the regional security complex theory (RSCT) to examine the security developments in West Asia. The RSCT adopts the regional level of analysis as its primary framework for understanding international security issues.
Results and Discussion
An examination of indicators from the Copenhagen School shows that, in West Asia, all four major components of the regional security complex have undergone significant transformation following the expansion of the Resistance Front. As a result of these developments, it seems that the security order desired by the hegemonic power has not materialized. Instead, a different security system has taken shape in the region. Moreover, the main areas of action have undergone fundamental changes. In the aftermath of the Arab world’s revolutionary developments, the system of regional security interdependence elevated Iran’s role as a security anchor. At the same time, shifts in the U.S. approach to West Asia—for example, its reluctance to fully support the Saudi crown prince following the murder of Jamal Khashoggi—helped generate new patterns of alignment and rivalry among regional states. The official end of the Syrian war and Syria’s re-invitation to the Arab League Summit further reshaped the landscape of regional security. These developments distanced Saudi Arabia from Qatar and Turkey while recognizing Iran as the axis of the Resistance Front. This reflected a broader shift in the perceptions of regional political units: effective security actors were no longer external hegemonic powers but regional ones. Taken together, these trends suggest that recent security developments in West Asia represent a transformation in the prevailing security model in the region.
Conclusion
The 12-year war in Syria and the 8-year war in Yemen—both of which ended in failure for the U.S. and its regional allies—not only shifted the geopolitical initiative in West Asia to the Resistance Front but also fundamentally altered how regional states view the security structure of West Asia. These developments were significant enough that Saudi Arabia, long considered one of the pillars of American security architecture in the region, has openly challenged Washington; indeed, it appears that the Abraham Accords may stall at this point. In effect, the Resistance Front has succeeded in transforming West Asia’s security order from a hegemonic model to a regional-group model, drawing major regional actors (e.g., Turkey and Saudi Arabia) toward this new paradigm.

Keywords

• Regional Security Complex Theory
• Resistance Front
• Power Transition Theory

Main Subjects

• Developments in the Middle East