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Quest for Regional Hegemony: The Politics of Ontological Insecurity in the Saudi–Iran Rivalry

Adısönmez, Umut Can, Onursal, Recep, Öztığ, Laçin İdil (2022) Quest for Regional Hegemony: The Politics of Ontological Insecurity in the Saudi–Iran Rivalry. Alternatives: Global, Local, Political, 48 (1). pp. 91-107. ISSN 2163-3150. (doi:10.1177/03043754221138186) (The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided) (KAR id:98096)

The full text of this publication is not currently available from this repository. You may be able to access a copy if URLs are provided. (Contact us about this Publication)
Official URL:
https://doi.org/10.1177/03043754221138186

Abstract

The rivalry between Iran and Saudi Arabia has been unfolding over a long period, influencing the politics and conflicts in the Middle East. The dynamics, content, and form of the rivalry have changed dramatically following the Iranian Revolution in 1979. Sectarianism is frequently seen as the constitutive element of the conflict between the two countries. This paper brings a new light into the literature on the nature of the evolving Saudi–Iran rivalry. Specifically, it explains Saudi Arabia’s ideational balancing and threat perception against Iran by highlighting the ontological security narratives under which the Saudi–Iran rivalry evolves. In doing so, it draws on the fatwas (i.e., religious opinions), issued by Saudi scholars, as an empirical object of investigation, and explores how they constitute and reconstitute Saudi Arabia’s ontological security narratives. In this way, this work critically explains the ontological security regime in Saudi Arabia and the nature of the political struggle and antagonism between the two countries.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1177/03043754221138186
Uncontrolled keywords: Political Science and International Relations, Sociology and Political Science
Subjects: J Political Science
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Human and Social Sciences > School of Politics and International Relations
Funders: University of Kent (https://ror.org/00xkeyj56)
SWORD Depositor: JISC Publications Router
Depositing User: JISC Publications Router
Date Deposited: 25 Nov 2022 14:25 UTC
Last Modified: 15 Feb 2023 16:11 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/98096 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

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