Iran in the New Eurasian Context
SERIES INTRODUCTION
Iran’s Bilateral Relations in the New Eurasian Context
By Esfandyar Batmanghelidj
In October 2019, the Middle East Institute (MEI) at the National University of Singapore and Bourse & Bazaar commissioned this collection of essays aiming to examine Iran’s relations in their “Eurasian context.” With Europe and Asia growing closer, particularly through economic integration, it is no longer sufficient to see Iran as a Middle Eastern nation. This series of essays will examine Iran’s bilateral relations from a Eurasian perspective, drawing out the understudied and under-appreciated economic and political considerations that increasingly shape the Islamic Republic’s conception of its place in the international system and the power it is able to exercise in that system. Six young and accomplished analysts examine Iran’s bilateral relations with six Eurasian states in this first-of-its kind volume.
Esfandyar Batmanghelidj is the founder of Bourse & Bazaar.
IRAN-CHINA
From Bilateralism to Multilateralism: Iran’s Place in China’s Eurasian Projects
By Jacopo Scita
Thanks to its geographical position and its positive and constructive relationship with China, Iran has a potentially pivotal role within Beijing’s Eurasian projection. However, the US administration’s decision to reimpose secondary sanctions on Iran seems to have slowed down the country’s integration into the emerging Eurasian architecture, causing Tehran to reprioritise bilateral relations with Beijing. This article argues that to mitigate the power imbalance in its relations with China, Iran should keep pushing for integration into China’s Belt and Road Initiative and lobbying for full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organistion. Ultimately, Sino–Iranian relations should be the flywheel for Iran’s participation in China-led Eurasian multilateral projects.
Jacopo Scita is a HH Sheikh Nasser al-Mohammad al-Sabah doctoral fellow at the School of Government and International Affairs, Durham University. His doctoral project explores the evolution of China’s role vis-à-vis Iran from the 1979 Revolution to the 2015 JCPOA.
IRAN-RUSSIA
Russia and Iran in Greater Eurasia
By Nicole Grajewski
This paper examines the Eurasian dimension of Russia–Iran relations and, in particular, Iran’s place in Russia’s endeavour to establish its centrality as an order-builder in the macro-regional system of Eurasia. The Russia–Iran relationship in Eurasia illustrates the complex interplay between geo-economic ambitions, security imperatives and wider normative projects.
Nicole Grajewski is a DPhil candidate in international relations at the University of Oxford, where her doctoral dissertation focuses on the place of Iran within Russian discourses on international order, as well as the divergences and convergences in Russia and Iran’s approaches to international relations. She holds an MPhil in Russian and East European studies from the University of Oxford and a BA in international affairs, security policy and Middle East studies from George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs.
IRAN-INDIA
Connectivity and Chabahar: The Eurasian Future of India’s Iran Policy
By Sumitha Kutty
The idea of engaging Iran through the lens of Eurasia is not alien to India’s foreign policy. Even as sanctions debilitate its energy dealings with Iran, India’s connectivity strategy through the Iranian port of Chabahar is designed to further its interests in Eurasia (particularly in Afghanistan and Central Asia). This paper traces India’s shifting priorities vis-à-vis Iran: reduced dealings in energy, limited security interactions and a renewed focus on land and maritime connectivity initiatives. It finds that — intentionally or not — the future of the India–Iran relationship is strongly intertwined with the Eurasian sphere, given its bet on connectivity.
Sumitha Narayanan Kutty is an associate research fellow at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. She tracks India’s foreign and security policies across the Indo–Pacific with a special interest in the Middle East.
IRAN-GCC
The Rivalry between Iran and the GCC States in the Eurasian Context
By Mehran Haghirian
Iran’s deepening partnerships with Russia and China and renewed ties with the European Union since the signing of the Iran nuclear deal have given the GCC states added reason to expand their own cooperation with these Eurasian players. The GCC states were already looking increasingly towards Eurasia for their security and economic needs, concerned that the US “pivot to Asia” was effectively an American retreat from the Persian Gulf region. The resulting scramble between Iran and the GCC for influence in Eurasia is likely to continue to affect the geopolitics of the Persian Gulf region for decades to come.
Mehran Haghirian is a PhD candidate at Qatar University and a researcher and assistant director at the university’s Ibn Khaldon Center for Humanities and Social Sciences. He is a graduate of American University’s School of International Service in Washington, DC, with a master’s degree in international affairs and a research focus on Iran and the Persian Gulf.
IRAN-ISRAEL
Israel and Iran: Thrust Together By Eurasia
By Daniel Amir
The rivalry between Israel and Iran is a key element of contemporary understandings of the Middle East. This article argues that despite highlighting the explosive hostility between Israel and Iran in certain areas, analysts sometimes neglect to examine the few points where the two do interact. A frequent theatre for this overlap is Eurasia. Here, the relative absence of American dominance sees Tel Aviv and Tehran thrust together, making space for nuanced relationships with and through common partners. The article ends by discussing the risks and challenges that Eurasia presents to the two countries’ political, economic and ideological concerns.
Daniel Amir is a digital journalist at BBC Monitoring. A graduate of the University of Oxford and the London School of Economics, he has written for The Independent, the New Statesman, Haaretz and others. BBC Monitoring tracks, translates and analyses media across the world for governments, corporates and academia. It has particular expertise in places where facts and access to balanced media are hard to come by.
IRAN-EUROPE
Iran’s Centrality in Europe’s Emerging Eurasian Policy
By Axel Hellman
European leaders are placing a greater emphasis on foreign policy. The experience of the Iran nuclear agreement, which European leaders have tried to sustain in spite of the unilateral US withdrawal from it, has laid bare both the ambitions as well as the shortcomings of European diplomacy. As Europe re-evaluates its role in the world, it may find itself operating in a more Eurasian context. Iran has been central both in the transformation of European strategic thinking as well as in preparing European leaders for pursuing their interests in a Eurasian context.
At the time of writing Axel Hellman was a policy fellow at the European Leadership Network (ELN), where his work primarily focused on EU foreign policy, economic statecraft and Russia–West relations. He is a prolific writer and public speaker, and his analyses and commentaries on international affairs have appeared in publications such as Newsweek, The Atlantic, Foreign Policy and The Financial Times. Hellman completed a master’s degree at St Antony’s College, Oxford, and holds a BA in international relations from King’s College London. He has also studied at Georgetown University in Washington, DC.
