1. Introduction
Central Asia and the South Caucasus constitute two interconnected regional security complexes in Iran’s northern strategic environment and have long played an important role in shaping regional security arrangements affecting Iran’s national security. Their geographical proximity to Iran, historical and cultural linkages, strategic communication and transit routes, energy resources, and the presence and competition of regional and extra-regional actors have made these two regions increasingly significant for Iran’s security environment. The post-Cold War transformation of regional geopolitical and geoeconomic structures has further intensified patterns of competition, cooperation, and conflict, generating a complex set of opportunities and challenges for Iran. Despite their strategic significance, Iran’s foreign and security policymaking toward Central Asia and the South Caucasus has faced various criticisms concerning insufficient attention, reactive approaches, fragmented policymaking, and inadequate adaptation to the multidimensional nature of contemporary security threats. Accordingly, this study asks: What are the requirements for fundamental reform of Iran’s security policymaking in Central Asia and the South Caucasus, and what policy recommendations can address these requirements in light of the complex and multidimensional threats emerging from these regions? The main objective is to identify the requirements for improving Iran’s security policymaking by developing a comprehensive understanding of the multilayered threats originating from, or developing through, the two regional security complexes.
2. Theoretical Framework
The study primarily draws on the theoretical foundations of the Copenhagen School of Security Studies, while also benefiting from relevant insights of Neoclassical Realism and policy studies. The Copenhagen School provides a particularly useful framework because it conceptualizes security beyond the traditional military domain and emphasizes the multidimensional and interconnected character of contemporary security threats. Its regional security complex approach is also relevant to understanding the security dynamics of Central Asia and the South Caucasus as geographically proximate and interrelated environments. Accordingly, the analysis considers five major security sectors: military, political, economic, societal, and environmental. This multidimensional perspective makes it possible to examine not only military threats associated with shifts in regional power balances and the presence of external actors, but also geopolitical competition, economic and transit vulnerabilities, identity and cultural dynamics, and environmental challenges. Concepts such as securitization further contribute to understanding how particular developments and issues acquire security significance and subsequently influence policymaking. The theoretical framework therefore facilitates an integrated assessment of Iran’s security environment rather than restricting the analysis to a single dimension of threat.
3. Methodology
This research employs a qualitative, analytical-explanatory methodology. Data were collected through library-based research and systematic examination of scholarly literature, books, academic publications, and relevant online sources. The collected materials were analyzed through an analytical-explanatory approach in order to identify the principal dimensions and patterns of threats confronting Iran through developments in Central Asia and the South Caucasus and to assess their implications for Iranian security policymaking. The theoretical framework provided by the Copenhagen School was used to organize and interpret the multidimensional nature of these threats, while insights from Neoclassical Realism and policy studies were employed to contextualize the relationship between external security pressures, domestic policymaking structures, and strategic responses. Rather than treating security as a narrowly military phenomenon, the research therefore adopts an integrated perspective that connects regional developments with Iran’s broader national-security interests.
4. Results & Discussion
The findings indicate that Central Asia and the South Caucasus generate a complex, multidimensional, and multilayered security environment for Iran. The interaction of regional and extra-regional actors, geopolitical competition, changing power balances, economic and transit developments, identity-related dynamics, and environmental challenges has expanded the range of issues that must be incorporated into Iran’s security policymaking. Consequently, a predominantly reactive or narrowly defined approach to security is insufficient for addressing the evolving regional environment. The study identifies several major requirements for fundamental reform. First, Iranian policymaking requires a broader and multidimensional conception of security capable of integrating military, political, economic, societal, informational, and environmental considerations. Second, security interests should be more systematically connected to economic and geoeconomic interests, particularly in the areas of energy, trade, and regional transit. Third, Iran’s historical, cultural, linguistic, and civilizational linkages with the region represent potential instruments of influence that can be incorporated into a more coherent and strategically oriented policy. Fourth, security policymaking should place greater emphasis on specialized knowledge, data-based analysis, professional expertise, and anticipatory assessment rather than predominantly reactive decision-making. Finally, the findings point to the importance of defining regional policy within the framework of broader national interests and strengthening institutional coordination among relevant actors.
5. Conclusions & Suggestions
The study concludes that the security dynamics of Central Asia and the South Caucasus should be considered an integral component of Iran’s broader national-security strategy rather than a peripheral dimension of foreign policy. The interconnectedness between Iran’s domestic and surrounding security environments means that geopolitical competition, identity dynamics, instability, and economic developments in these regions can have direct and indirect consequences for Iran’s border security, internal stability, and national interests. Fundamental reform therefore requires a transition from reactive to proactive and strategy-oriented policymaking, supported by institutional reform, greater interagency coordination, investment in specialized human capital, and the systematic use of knowledge and data in security decision-making. The study further suggests strengthening the linkage between security and geoeconomic interests, making targeted use of Iran’s historical and cultural capacities, adopting a broader conception of national interests, and reducing excessive ideological constraints on regional policymaking. Such reforms can provide a basis for a more coherent, integrated, long-term, and future-oriented approach to Central Asia and the South Caucasus and enhance Iran’s capacity to respond to the evolving regional security environment