Competition and Interaction between Iran and Turkey in Iraq and Its Impact on the Balance of Power in the Middle East
Keywords:
Iran, Turkey, Iraq, balance of power, regional security, geopoliticsAbstract
Developments in Iraq after the fall of the Baath regime in 2003 turned the country into one of the most important arenas for the redistribution of power in the Middle East and created the conditions for simultaneous competition and interaction between Iran and Turkey. Influenced by geopolitical imperatives, security considerations, economic interests, and historical ties, these two actors have pursued multidimensional strategies in response to Iraq’s newly emerging political structure. Within this framework, the present study was conducted with the aim of examining competition and interaction between Iran and Turkey in Iraq and analyzing their impact on the balance of power in the Middle East. Iran, viewing Iraq as part of its surrounding security environment, has sought to contain potential threats and enhance its strategic depth in West Asia by strengthening the stability of Baghdad’s political structure, expanding security cooperation, and developing relations with Shiite actors and some Kurdish groups. By contrast, Turkey, with a focus on managing threats related to the Kurdish issue, expanding economic influence, establishing trade networks, and engaging with Sunni and Turkmen communities, has adopted a balancing strategy toward Iraq’s domestic and regional developments. The interaction between these two countries in Iraq has a multilevel nature and is reproduced at governmental, party-based, ethno-religious, economic, and security levels. This has caused the pattern of Iran–Turkey relations to move away from direct confrontation and toward a form of managed competition and strategic fluidity. The consequences of this pattern have extended beyond Iraq’s borders and have affected the formation of the balance of power in the Middle East, the configuration of regional alliances, and the pattern of influence exercised by extra-regional actors. Accordingly, the study of post-2003 Iraq has become a basis for analyzing the changing nature of power, competition, and cooperation in the contemporary Middle East.
Downloads
References
1. Vaezi M. Iran's Foreign Policy and Regional Developments. Tehran: Center for Strategic Research; 2015.
2. Al-Azzawi A. Iranian-Iraqi Relations after 2003. Baghdad: Center for Regional Studies; 2016.
3. Ahmadi H. Foreign Policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the Middle East. Tehran: Nashr-e Ney; 2014.
4. Hafeznia MR. Principles and Concepts of Geopolitics. Tehran: SAMT; 2013.
5. Nasrollahi M. Iran's regional policy and the concept of strategic depth. Foreign Policy Quarterly. 2016;29(4):65-82.
6. Mir Torabi SM. Cultural and Religious Relations between Iran and Iraq in the Contemporary Period. Tehran: Institute for Strategic Studies; 2017.
7. Al-Kaabi H. Iran's Cultural and Religious Influence in Iraq. Beirut: Middle East Studies Center; 2017.
8. Taheri A. Iran-Iraq economic relations after 2003. Middle East Studies Quarterly. 2018;24(3):115-32.
9. Al-Juburi M. Sunnis in Iraq and Their Role in the Political Process after 2003. Baghdad: Center for Strategic Studies; 2018.
10. Ghasemi A. Iran's role in fighting ISIS in Iraq. Strategic Studies Quarterly. 2019;21(2):95-110.
11. Al-Shammari S. The Iranian role in fighting ISIS in Iraq. Journal of Political Science. 2019;15(2):70-85.
12. Wehrey F, Kaye D, Watkins J, Martini J, Guffey H. Dangerous but Not Omnipotent: Exploring the Reach and Limitations of Iranian Power in the Middle East. Santa Monica: RAND Corporation, 2009.
13. Nasr V. The Shia Revival: How Conflicts within Islam Will Shape the Future. New York: W. W. Norton; 2006.
14. Dodge T. Iraq: From War to a New Authoritarianism. London: Routledge; 2013.
15. Mansour R, Jabar FA. The Popular Mobilization Forces and Iraq's Future. Beirut: Carnegie Middle East Center, 2017.
16. Mansour R. The Popular Mobilization Forces and Iraq's Future. Washington, DC: Carnegie Middle East Center, 2017.
17. Katzman K. Iraq: Politics, Governance, and Human Rights. Washington, DC: Congressional Research Service, 2016.
18. Park B. Turkey-Kurdish Regional Government Relations after the US Withdrawal from Iraq. Carlisle: Strategic Studies Institute, 2013.
19. Barkey HJ. Turkish Foreign Policy and the Middle East. London: Routledge; 2013.
20. Öniş Z, Yılmaz Ş. Turkey and the Middle East after the Arab Spring: A new era of engagement? Third World Quarterly. 2013;34(6):103-20.
21. Bilgin M. Energy and Turkey's Foreign Policy: State Strategy, Regional Cooperation and Private Sector Involvement. London: Routledge; 2013.
22. Aras B, Akpınar P. The relations between Turkey and Iraq: An evolving regional security complex. Middle East Policy. 2018;25(1):228-40.
23. Aydın M. Türk dış politikası ve Ortadoğu. İstanbul: Alfa Yayınları; 2016.
24. Orhan O. Türkiye'nin Irak politikası ve güvenlik boyutu. Ankara: Ortadoğu Stratejik Araştırmalar Merkezi Yayınları; 2016.
25. Mills R. The Myth of the Oil Crisis: Overcoming the Challenges of Depletion, Geopolitics and Global Warming. London: I.B. Tauris; 2015.
26. Natali D. The fragmentation of Kurdish politics and regional rivalries. Middle East Policy. 2024;31(1):117-35.
27. Stansfield G. Iraq: People, History, Politics. Cambridge: Polity Press; 2015.
28. Yılmaz S. Türkiye'nin Ortadoğu politikası ve enerji güvenliği. İstanbul: SETA Yayınları; 2018.
29. Demir İ. Türkiye'nin enerji politikası ve Ortadoğu. Ankara: Nobel Akademik Yayıncılık; 2018.
30. Winrow GM. Turkey, energy security and the Middle East. Energy Security and Geopolitics in Eurasia. London: Routledge; 2015.
31. Stansfield G. Iraqi Kurdistan: Political dynamics and regional impact. Middle East Journal. 2018;74(3):55-72.
32. Fulton J. Iran's foreign policy towards Iraq after 2003. The International Relations of the Persian Gulf. London: Routledge; 2018.
33. Al-Tamimi A. Shiites in Iraq and Their Role in the Political System after 2003. Baghdad: Center for Strategic Studies; 2018.
34. Demir S. Turkey-Kurdistan Regional Government Relations in the Changing Middle East. Ankara: Nobel Akademik Yayıncılık; 2023.
35. Al-Juburi K. Iran's economic role in Iraq. Journal of Political Studies. 2018;12(1):55-70.
36. Al-Nuaimi S. Political Transformations in Contemporary Iraq. Beirut: Middle East Studies Center; 2018.
37. Saatçi S. Irak Türkmenleri: Tarih, siyaset ve kimlik. Ankara: Nobel Akademik Yayıncılık; 2017.
38. Kirişci K. Turkey's Economic Diplomacy in the Middle East. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press; 2022.
39. Tripp C. A History of Iraq. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; 2013.
40. Gunter MM. The Kurdish Spring: Geopolitical Changes and the Kurds. Costa Mesa: Mazda Publishers; 2013.
41. Natali D. The Kurdish Quasi-State: Development and Dependency in Post-Gulf War Iraq. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press; 2013.
42. Salloukh BF, Lynch M, Brynen R, Hudson M. The Politics of the Middle East: International Relations of the Region. Boulder: Lynne Rienner Publishers; 2019.
43. Lynch M. The New Arab Wars: Uprisings and Anarchy in the Middle East. New York: PublicAffairs; 2019.
44. Eisenstadt M. Iran's Political Penetration of Iraq. Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 2017.
45. Stein A. Turkey and the New Regional Politics in the Middle East. Atlantic Council, 2016.
46. Knights M, Mello A. The Popular Mobilization Forces and Iraq's Future. Washington Institute, 2017.
47. Alfoneh A. Iran's Influence in Iraq after 2014. Atlantic Council, 2018.
48. Ulrichsen K. The Changing Geopolitics of the Middle East. Brookings Institution, 2020.
49. Mansour R. Iraq's Fragmented State and Regional Competition. Chatham House, 2023.
50. Eisenstadt M, Knights M. Iran's Strategic Influence in Iraq's Political System. Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 2023.
51. Çiçek C. Turkey's political engagement in Iraq: Power, alliances and limits. Middle East Policy. 2023;30(2):79-95.
52. Dodge T. Iraq and the Struggle for Regional Order. London: Routledge; 2023.
53. Hosseini S. Iran's Role in Iraq's Political Developments after ISIS. Tehran: Institute for Strategic Studies Publications; 2023.
54. Gürcan M. Turkey's Military Operations in Northern Iraq: Strategic Depth and Regional Implications: Routledge; 2024.
55. Barkey HJ. Turkey's expanding security footprint in Iraqi Kurdistan. Middle East Journal. 2024;78(1):1-20.
56. Farahani A. Iran's border security strategy and Kurdish armed groups in northern Iraq. Journal of Contemporary Middle East Studies. 2024;15(2):45-62.
57. Hiltermann J. Baghdad-Erbil Relations and Regional Security Dynamics. International Crisis Group, 2024.
Downloads
Published
Submitted
Revised
Accepted
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Ashoor Sawari Pour (Author); Davood Kiani; Mehdi JavdaniMoghadam (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
