The U.S. Strategy of Entangling Iran in Peripheral Conflict

Abstract: The U.S. invasion of Iraq has jeopardized the security of the Middle
East. Although Shiites play an effective role in the political structure of Iraq,
they have been facing stern security pressures by the fundamentalist Sunni
groups since 2003. In other words, the dilemma for Shiites is that while they
are dealing with multilateral reactions and threats by the Arab states, they
have lost the support of the Western countries. This indicates of shaping a
new regional structure of political and security relations.
During his last year’s State of the Union address before the U.S.
Congress, President George W. Bush tried to introduce a new security threat
in the Middle East. He said fundamentalist Shiites just like their
fundamentalist Sunni counterparts would pose a threat to the American
interests and national security. It means that a new form of political and
strategic conflict is emerging whose parties are the United States, Iran and
the revolutionary Shiite groups. Arrangements for such a conflict were made
after through a new coalition among U.S. and the regional states of Jordan,
Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.


The U.S. Strategy of Entangling Iran in Peripheral Conflict