Russia’s View on Iranian Geopolitics

The nature of the Islamic Revolution is against western values and policies. Along this path, the Revolution has made continuous attempts to develop its relations with the West. But the point that must be considered is that due to the incorrect policies of the western countries, tendency towards the East was established in Iran, and, during Ahmadinejad’s presidency, the policy of looking towards the East or eastern diplomacy was formed. This policy moves towards powerful eastern countries. Iran’s geography and geopolitics necessitates simultaneous interactions with the West and the East and at the same time prevents Iran’s dependency in either bloc.

From the viewpoint of Russia, Iran has never had the value of strategic partnership. Published documents of Russia’s foreign policy and defense and security issues show that Russia has only had tactical relations with Iran. It is possible that some, including Eurasianists, concentrate on these relations but, in general, Russian politicians have deep mistrust with regard to Iran’s foreign policy towards the West. Nonetheless, Iran has always held a special status in Russia’s view. The reason is Iran’s constant confrontation with the West especially the US. This confrontation has created proper capacity for Russia to use Iran’s card in negotiations. Following the Islamic Revolution, the issue of Iran has always been discussed between Russian and US leaders before and after the collapse of the Soviet Union. In Russia’s view, Iran is a constructive and considerable partner. Due to the common borders which Iran has with Central Asia and the Caucuses, the Islamic Republic of Iran always considers Russia’s interests in these regions in its policies.

In fact, the element of Russia is an effective element in Iran’s policies in these regions. Iran’s situation, which could challenge the monopoly of Russia’s energy transfer from Central Asia and the Caucuses, is of great concern for Russia. During the past years, Russia’s diplomatic attempts were aimed at moving Iran towards eastern markets and away from western markets.

These issues indicate that Iran has not had a successful diplomacy in the field of energy. Iran’s inconsideration of this issue has caused Turkey to become the hub of energy transfer in the region. Of course, Turkey has its own characteristics and geopolitical situations, but Iran needs to do more calculations in its views of the world.