Security Issues of the South Caucasus in the Context of the Israel–Iran Conflict

Abstract

In the context of contemporary geopolitical and geo-economic realignments, the South Caucasus, with its strategic significance and importance, has become a focal point for the interests of regional players and major power centers. The encounter and intersection of these often conflicting interests, along with opposing stances on the formation of the region's new military-political architecture, render the South Caucasus security complex even more sensitive and fragile. The scientific study of these new realities is of paramount relevance, particularly when analyzed through the prism of the multilayered and fluctuating relations between Iran and Israel.

These two countries, with historical paths spanning millennia, possess distinct political, socio-cultural, and demographic profiles, as well as differing perceptions of the essence of statehood. Their relations have evolved through several historical stages. Iran recognized the State of Israel as early as 1950. Starting in the 1950s, the intelligence services of both countries began to cooperate, and in 1959, they signed a memorandum of understanding regarding cooperation in defense and intelligence. During those years, Israel supported Iran's nuclear programs. After the Islamic Revolution of 1979, their relationship shifted drastically, transforming from the clandestine cooperation of the Pahlavi era into open hostility. This dramatic change was driven by the change of regime in Iran and its new ideological foundations, which were anti-Zionist in nature. In the post-Soviet years, the divergent interests and conflictual interactions of these two key regional actors have posed serious threats not only to the Middle East but also to the countries of the South Caucasus, specifically to the security of the Republic of Armenia.