خلاصة:
This article aims at examining the reasons for the focus of the Iran's foreign policy under the presidency of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on third world countries, especially Africa and Latin America. With the coming to power of the Ahmadinejad government, Iranian foreign policy orientation underwent a great shift from détente and cooperation with the West to expanding relations with third world countries. In examining the reason for this change, this article argues that a certain kind of perception of constructive doctrine and a reaction to Khatami's foreign policy, failure in converging and a coalition – building with the peripheral environment, and some common views between Iran and Africa and Latin American countries regarding the nature of international order provided grounds for Iranian foreign policy to focus on the third world in this period. For this study the article explores national, regional and international issues. Relying upon a theoretical view based on the level of analysis in foreign policy, the author while studying the main reasons for paying attention to the third world in Iranian foreign policy, explores the grounds and reasons for the realization of this approach in Ahmadinejad 's era.
ملخص الجهاز:
In examining the reason for this change, this article argues that a certain kind of perception of constructive doctrine and a reaction to Khatami's foreign policy, failure in converging and a coalition – building with the peripheral environment, and some common views between Iran and Africa and Latin American countries regarding the nature of international order provided grounds for Iranian foreign policy to focus on the third world in this period.
Also during that period the Cold War's security atmosphere dictated the priority of foreign relations with great powers (Azghandi, 1997: introduction), but during the time following the emergence of the Islamic Revolution, Iranian foreign policy shifted radically under the influence of religious ideals, as a result, improving relations with the third world countries aiming at challenging the established order and confronting the status quo.
Inspired by Rosnau in combining these levels, it can be said that shift in Iranian foreign policy from interaction with the West and great powers in the "reforms government" to an increase in interactions with the third world countries, in the "principlist justice-oriented government" has been influenced by all three national or domestic, regional and international levels.
In addition, the definition of principles and behavioral patterns in foreign policy such as the priority of national goals, economic development, necessity of normalization of ties, and prioritizing regionalism with an emphasis on the Persian Gulf sub-system and the (Economic Cooperation Organization) ECO organization (Dehghani, 2009: 388-395) brought about a kind of pragmatism in Iranian foreign policy resulting in less attention to third world countries compared to the previous period and giving priority to dialogue and détente, however in a critical manner, with the West.