In the wake of the 1979 Iranian revolution, relations between states in the Middle East were reconfigured and reassessed overnight. Amongst the most-affected was the relationship between Iran and Saudi Arabia. The existence of a new regime in Tehran led to increasingly vitriolic confrontations between these two states, often manifesting themselves in the conflicts across the region, such as those in Lebanon and Iraq, and more recently in Bahrain and Syria.

In this new and revised second edition, Simon Mabon examines the different identity groups within Saudi Arabia and Iran (made up of various religions, ethnicities and tribal groupings), proposing that internal insecurity has an enormous impact on the wider ideological and geopolitical competition between the two. With analysis of this heated and often uneasy relationship and its impact on the wider Middle East, this book is vital for those researching international relations and diplomacy in the region.

‘This book is essential reading for any informed understanding of a relationship whose scope and dynamic will likely shape the political and strategic landscape of the Middle East in the years ahead.’ -- Clive Jones, Professor of Regional Security, Durham University
‘An impressive work that leaves the reader with a strong and nuanced understanding of the rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran, and how it affects the internal and foreign policies of both nations… As diplomacy continues between Iran and the P-5+1, diplomats would do themselves a service by picking up Mabon’s book.’ -- Stephen McGlinchey * e-International Relations *

Simon Mabon is Senior Lecturer in International Relations in the Department of Politics, Philosophy and Religion at Lancaster University, UK and a research associate with the Foreign Policy Centre. He holds a PhD in International Relations from the University of Leeds.