7.8C - Middle Eastern Tensions
Cultural, political, economic and environmental tensions in the Middle East represent an ongoing challenge to the superpowers and emerging powers due to complex geopolitical relations combined with a supply of vital energy resources. (A: contrasting cultural ideologies)
The world economy runs on crude oil. The Middle East contains 60%of proven oil reserves, so no superpower or emerging power can ignore it.
The Middle East is an area of tension and conflict for a number of reasons:
- Most Muslim countries are hostile to the Jewish state of Israel: Iran has vowed to destroy it, but the USA is a key ally of Israel
- Religious differences between Sunni (Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey) and Shia (Iran, Iraq, Lebanon) branches of Islam are a source of conflict between and within countries.
- Since 2011, the rise of the extremist group Islamic State in Iraq and Syria has created wars, terrorism and a refugee crisis.
- The Kurdish people (in Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey) are demanding their own state.
- Since 2015 a civil war has raged in Yemen, which has involved Saudi Arabia directly and the USA indirectly
The complex web of alliances and geopolitical relations within Middle Eastern countries is a major ongoing challenge to stability. Russia, and to a lesser extent, China, tend to support Iran within the region. The USA and EU lean towards Saudi Arabia. The Saudis and Iranians both see themselves as regional leaders, but relations between them are poor.
Globally, there are three contrasting cultural ideologies. Western capitalism (EU, North America, South America), the Muslim world (Middle East, North Africa) and Asian. Attitudes to religion, trade, social relations, women, sexuality and the environment differ in all three. This means that geopolitical relationships between them are not always easy.