The geopolitical impacts of the Russo-Ukrainian war on Iran

Russia’s attack on Ukraine has had huge and destructive consequences for Iran. The war began when the nuclear negotiations between Iran and the Western countries for the revival of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action ( JCPOA) were in a promising state and the parties were in the final stages. This paper seeks to examine the effects of this war on Iran’s foreign policy by considering securitization and desecuritization. Considering this, the paper concludes that Iran has faced the direct consequences of the war in its domestic and foreign policies. At the foreign policy level, Iran has faced a decrease in international prestige due to its proximity to Russia, the use Iranian drones by Russia on the battlefield and the ‘death’ of the JCPOA. As the West securitized the issue of Iran, Iranian authorities desecuritized Iran’s relations with Arab countries, while securitized relations with the Caucasus.