Abstract:
What explains Iranian foreign policy in the region under the presidency of Mahmud Ahmadi-
Nejad? Was it shaped by realist geopolitical calculations or ideological ones, or, alternatively, a
combination of them? To explain this research question the thesis investigates Iranian foreign
policy in the Middle East after the 2003 US invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq. It does
so by focusing on the geopolitical confrontation between Iran and the US and Saudi Arabia in
Iraq and Lebanon. The two case studies are selected because they represent the most important
and direct confrontation sites after 2003 between, on the one hand, Iran, and the other the US and
Saudi Arabia. The comparative analysis undertaken in this thesis suggests that both realist and
ideological variables interact to shape Iran’s foreign policy choices under President Ahmadi-
Nejad.
