Journal of Political Strategy

The Place of the Middle East in the Foreign Policy of Great Powers: Examining Patterns of Competition, Cooperation, and Geopolitical Confrontation

Volume 9, Issue 3 - Serial Number 34
Autumn 2025
Pages 151-171
Journal of Political Strategy

Document Type : Original Independent Original Article

Author

hosseinali mehrnia

Department of Islamic Studies, South Tehran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract
The Middle East, as one of the most sensitive and strategic regions in the world, has always been the focus of attention of global powers, and its geopolitical, geoeconomic, and security variables have played a decisive role in the direction of foreign policy of these powers. Using an analytical-descriptive approach and relying on the theoretical frameworks of new realism and critical geopolitics, this study examines the patterns of competition, cooperation, and confrontation between major powers in the Middle East. The findings show that global actors—especially the United States, Russia, China, and the European Union—have adopted different, but in some areas overlapping, strategies toward the Middle East based on goals such as controlling energy resources, managing security transitions, confronting strategic rivals, and consolidating regional influence. In this regard, geopolitical competitions in the areas of energy, new technologies, lines of communication and security balancing are considered to be the most important axes of action of these powers. Also, pragmatic and sometimes limited interactions between major players show that cooperation in this region is mainly tactical and based on crisis management, not its resolution. The conclusion of the study shows that a complex combination of competition, cooperation and confrontation will determine the

Keywords

Middle East
foreign policy
great powers
patterns of competition and cooperation
geopolitics
Subjects
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