State Structure and the Problematic of Iran and Iraq Cooperation

Geographical continuities, intraregional requirements, underdevelopment, and energy issue are among the issues which can justify the convergence of the Iran-Iraq economic relations; Iran and Iraq both are among Middle Eastern countries whose fundamentals of power and political legitimacy have been formed on the basis of religion. These two countries have many convergence grounds including Kurds issue, cooperation with OPEC, cultural and religious subjects, and the problem of foreign intervention. But despite the convergence factors, there are some factors such as capturing the regional consumer markets and production and the sale of oil that place the two countries against each other. This article by political economy approach and using a theoretical framework which is based on "the rentier state theory" and "integration theory" will assess the internal problematic of integration between Iran and Iraq by studying the structure of power in the region, and it will deal with the feasibility assessment of the convergence grounds of these two countries. This essay will show that domination of rentierism over the two countries’ state is the most significant obstacle for regional integration. Finally, the article will present some proposes which can help the promotion of economic cooperation and integration between Iran and Iraq in the region.