Explaining the change and continuity of Saudi Arabia's foreign policy approach towards Yemen; The role and impact of the Islamic Republic of Iran

Subject Areas : International Relations

Alireza  Mohammadinigjeh ¹ (student)
Hossain  Daheshiar ² (Professor of International Relations, Faculty member of Allameh Tabatabai University, Tehran, Iran.)
nozar  shafiee ³ (Associate Professor, Department of political Sciences, Faculty of Administrative Sciences and Economics, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran.)

Received: 2023-11-04 Accepted : 2024-03-18 Published : 2024-03-18

Keywords: Islamic Republic of Iran&quot, , Saudi Arabia&quot, , Yemen&quot, , foreign policy&quot, , domestic, regional and international level,

Abstract :

Abstract With the onset of what is known as the Arab Spring, it was inevitable for Iran and Saudi Arabia to play a role. These two important countries in the region took completely different positions regarding the current developments in the crisis-affected countries, including Yemen. After Iran's support for Ansarullah, Saudi Arabia launched a military attack on Yemen in April 2014. After 6 years of war, Saudi Arabia shifted towards engaging in political dialogue with the Yemeni side. The main issue of this article is why this change occurred. In response to this problem, using the explanatory-analytical method, it is argued that factors at three levels of analysis - domestic (Saudi Arabia), regional, and international - led to the Saudi military attack on Yemen and subsequent changes at these three levels. It is mentioned that this caused Saudi Arabia to opt for diplomacy. Meanwhile, Iran's role is examined at the regional level of analysis.