Genealogy of the Foreign Policy of Saudi Arabia: A Realist Strategy on the Basis of Identity

Saudi Arabia is one of the most important states in the Middle East which was constructed on an identity basis inspired, to a great extent, by Wahhabi sect. Wahabbism has played an important role in the process of the evaluation and continuation of political life in this country, and is the most important source of political legitimacy of the regime. This article poses the question that whether this factor (identity) has an impact on Saudi Arabia's foreign policy. The hypothesis is that the diplomacy of Saudi Arabia since its establishment has been based on struggling against threat and the nature and source of threats have determined Saudi's foreign policy towards other countries while the element of identity has been widely neglected by the Saudi officials. This article has been written based on a genealogical (historical-analytical) approach and its most important scientific finding is that Saudi Arabia's foreign policy is most affected by its security concerns and considerations.