Iran's Foreign Policy during Ahmadinejad: From Confrontation to Accommodation
Iran's Foreign Policy during Ahmadinejad: From Confrontation to Accommodation
Some scholars have observed that Iran's foreign policy has leaned toward assertiveness since MahmoodAhmadinejad came to power in 2005. They have tried to attribute this assertiveness to some internal andexternal factors. After reviewing the literature, we argue that the assertiveness of Iran's foreign policyduring the first period of Ahmadinejad`s presidency is rooted in psychological (Ahmadinejad beliefsystem), social (the social base of the new government), political (factional rivalries), historical (ideals ofthe Islamic Revolution), and external (the way Western countries treated Iran during Khatami) factors. Onthe contrary, it seems that Iran's foreign policy since the recent presidential election in 2009 has somehowsoftened and it appears to be less confrontational. This change, if real, may have significant implicationsfor Iran's relations with the Western countries, particularly the United States. We seek to identify the mainreasons for this change and explicate its main consequences for the Iranian foreign relations. This paperhas four sections. First, we discuss the main features of Iran's assertive foreign policy during the firstperiod of Ahmadinejad`s presidency. Secondly, we try to explain the main origins of this assertiveness.Thirdly, the recent developments in Iran's foreign policy, especially Ahmadinejad`s new moderateorientation, will be discussed and the main causes will be spelled out. Finally, the main implications ofthis change in Iran's foreign behavior will be discussed.Key words: Iran, Foreign Policy, Ahmadinejad, confrontation, accommodation
