Strategic Culture and Islamic Republic of Iran’s Foreign Policy Towards Afghanistan (1358-1398)

Strategic culture is one of the new concepts in international relations literature which has been used by Jack Snyder for the first time. Scientific studies regarding the effects of strategic culture on Islamic Republic of Iran’s behavior have been mainly conducted during the two recent decades and specifically after the rise of crises regarding the nuclear power case and ballistic missile program. The main question of the present paper states: how the strategic culture has been shaping the Islamic Republic of Iran’s foreign policy regarding Afghanistan from 1358 to 1398? Our provisional answer to this question is that strategic culture, through shaping strategic and consistent behaviors, has led the Islamic Republic of Iran to adopt a consistent and ultra-discourse policy towards Afghanistan from 1358 to 1398, unlike the political and discourse-related developments within the country. The present paper is descriptive-analytical and the researcher gathered the necessary data through library resources, social media and interview with Iran’s foreign policy authorities who have been responsible for Afghanistan issues.