Iran's National Security and Afghanistan Crisis. Unpacking the Impacts of the Taliban's Takeover of Power on Iranian National Security -

Article

Open Access

by Pourya Nabipour¹, Vida Yaghooti² and Ali Khansari³
¹ University of Birmingham (Birmingham, United Kingdom)
² Islamic Azad University (Tehran, Iran)
³ Allameh Tabatabaei University (Tehran, Iran)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29202/up/9/4
Received: 1 September 2021 / Accepted: 15 October 2021 / Published: 1 December 2021

View Full-Text Review Reports Cite This Paper

Abstract

This paper addresses the question of how the Taliban takeover of power in Afghanistan impacts Iran’s national security. The paper aims to offer an enhanced understanding of the current developments in Afghanistan and argues that the advancement of Taliban forces as well as the Islamic state’s territorial expansion inside Afghanistan poses a genuine threat to the Iranian state’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. In terms of Iran’s human security, enhanced terrorism, drug, and human trafficking within the state will probably impact the physical security of the Iranian citizens as a result of the Afghan crisis. Using a constructivist methodology, the paper also shows the importance of the national identity of Iran for the construction of security policy which is thus imperative not only for a better understanding of Iran’s approach to security but also for creating conducive steps towards reconciliation between Iran and the international community.

Keywords: National Security, Iranian Security Policy, Afghanistan, the Taliban, Global and regional Competitions

References

Barzegar, K. (2009) The Balance of Power in the Persian Gulf: An Iranian View. Middle East Policy, 17(3), 74-87. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-4967.2010.00452.x

Barzegar, K. (2021) Iran’s Foreign Policy and Strategies. MENA in Focus, No. 1, 73-83. https://doi.org/10.1080/0163660x.2017.1302738

Blanchard, C.M. (2009) Afghanistan: Narcotics and us policy. Diane Publishing.

Buddenberg, D., and Byrd, W.A. (Eds.) (2006) Afghanistan’s drug industry: structure, functioning, dynamics, and implications for counter-narcotics policy. Diane Publishing.

Clemens, J. (2018) Opium in Afghanistan: Prospects for the Success of Source Country Drug Control Policies. The Journal of Law and Economics, 51 (3), 407-432. https://doi.org/10.1086/589673

Dreazen, Y. (2015). The Taliban’s new number 2 is a ‘Mix of Tony Soprano and Che Guevara’. Foreign Policy, 31 July, 2015. Available online: https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/07/31/afghanistan-taliban-war-terrorism-alqaeda-cia-mullahomar-haqqani/

Ejvegard, R. (2009) Vetenskaplig Metod. 4. ed. Lund: Studentlitteratur.

Fars News Agency (2021) U.N. Ignores 45-Fold Rise in Narcotics Production After U.S., NATO Occupation of Afghanistan, Asks Tehran to Stop Punishing Death Dealers. Available online: http://fna.ir/o0bf

Griffiths, M. (2007) International Relations Theory for the Twenty-First Century. London and New York, Routledge.

Hopf, T. (1998) The Promise of Constructivism in International Relations Theory. International Security, Vol. 23, No. 1, 171-200. https://doi.org/10.2307/2539267

IOM – International Organization for Migration (2009) Commonly used migration terms. Available online: https://publications.iom.int/system/files/pdf/iml_1_en.pdf

Katzenstein, P. (1996) The culture of national security. National Security: Norms and Identity in World Politics. New York, Columbia University Press.

Kleiman, M.A.R. (2004) Illicit Drugs and the Terrorist Threat: Causal Links and Implications for Domestic Drug Control Policy. Congressional Research Service Report for Congress. Washington, the Library of Congress.

Mickolus, E.F. (1989) What constitutes state support to terrorists? Terrorism and Political Violence, 1(3), 287-293, https://doi.org/10.1080/09546558908427028

Milani, M.M. (2009) Tehran’s Take. Understanding Iran’s U.S. Policy. Foreign Affairs, July/ August, 2009. Available online: http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/65123/mohsenm-milani/tehrans-take?page=show

Peters, G. (2009) How opium profits the Taliban. Washington, DC: United States Institute of Peace.

Rassler, D., and Brown, V. (2011) Evolution of al-Qaida. Harmony Program. Combating Terrorism Center.

Security Council Committee (2021) Twelfth report of the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team submitted pursuant to resolution 2557 (2020) concerning the Taliban and other associated individuals and entities constituting a threat to the peace stability and security of Afghanistan. Available online: https://www.undocs.org/pdf?symbol-=en/S/2021/486

Seldin, J. (2021) Where is the Taliban getting their money? Voice of America. Available online: https://www.voanews.com/a/us-afghanistan-troop-withdrawal_where-are-talibangetting-their-money/6209559.html

Stepanova, E., and A. Javid (2020) Terrorism in Afghanistan: Militant Terrorist Groups in and Connected to Afghanistan. EastWest Institute.

Tamanna, F. (2008) U.S. Foreign Policy in Afghanistan. The Research Institute of Strategic Studies Publications, Tehran.

Tasnim News (2019) «Statistics of martyrs of 40 years of fighting against drugs.» Tasnim. Available online: https://www.tasnimnews.com/fa/news/1398/08/02/2126272/

Townshend, Ch. (2018) Terrorism: A Very Short Introduction. Third Edition. New York, Oxford University.

Turak, N. (2021) Terrorism will increase under Afghanistan’s newly appointed Taliban government, experts warn. CNBC. Available online: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/08/terrorism-to-increase-under-afghanistans-new-taliban-government.html

United Nations (2021) Letter dated 28 April 2021 from the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team addressed to the Chair of the Security Council Committee established pursuant to resolution 1988. Available online: https://www.undocs.org/pdf?symbol-=en/S/2021/486

Usman, T., and Khan, M.M. (2013) Drug trafficking from Afghanistan to Pakistan and its implications. Journal of the Research Society of Pakistan, 50(2), 25-43.

Wendt, A. (1994) Collective Identity Formation and the International State. American Political Science Review, 88, no. 2, 391-425.

Share and Cite

Nabipour, Pourya, Vida Yaghooti, and Ali Khansari (2021) Iran’s National Security and Afghanistan Crisis. Unpacking the impacts of the Taliban’s takeover of power on Iranian national security. Ukrainian Policymaker, Volume 9, 38-50. https://doi.org/10.29202/up/9/4

Back to the list of Articles