The Logical Relationship Between National Interests and Ideology in the Foreign Policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran

Abstract

This article is fundamentally rich in concepts, as it encompasses more than one conceptual variable. On the one hand, it addresses the two concepts of ideology and national interests, and on the other hand, it examines their relationship in foreign policy, focusing specifically on the logical relationship between them. Moreover, the article is based on the methodology that, on the one hand, there exists an "otherness" between the concepts of ideology and national interests. Without this distinction, the question of their relationship would lack substance. On the other hand, this relationship requires exploration and clarification to resolve the challenges arising from ambiguity, both theoretically and practically. Furthermore, within the decision-making system, this relationship will become the criterion for legitimacy, because if a logical conflict or contradiction is established between these two, continuing the current state of foreign policy in the Islamic Republic of Iran will not be wise. More importantly, the logical relationship does not refer to attachment, association, or connection, but rather to a proximity and a stable, eternal, and substantive relation that even scientific upheavals cannot distort or undermine. Additionally, the logical relationship overshadows other relationships governing the two concepts of national interests and ideology in the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, such as the relationship between concept and instance, desired and existent, whole and part, negation and affirmation, theoretical and practical, ideal and reality, as well as divergence and convergence. This is because the essential characteristic of the logical relationship is the negation of contradictions and conflicts. In fact, logical rules function similarly to mathematical laws, where relationships are defined, leaving no room for political bias or ideological orientations. The research methodology of this article is based on logical reasoning, the description of existents, and the analysis of thoughts. The logical result of the relationship is derived from its foundational premises, which involve the distinction of the four relationships. The variables in the article also include the concepts of national interests and ideology, with national interests serving as the independent variable. From this perspective, advocates of ideological foreign policy, proponents of interest-based foreign policy, and those advocating a combined foreign policy, are all confined by logical reasoning and philosophical laws. The hypothesis of the article, which emerges from the title—i.e., the nature of the logical relationship between national interests and ideology in the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran—has been formulated by reflecting on the fourfold structure of formal logic, known as the four relationships: equal, contrary, general and specific absolute, and general and specific relative. It is as follows: "The multiplicity of relationships and the intertwined nature of the two conceptual constructs of national interests and ideology with the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran reflect a specific logical cohesion, namely, the general and specific relative, which is proven through the negation of the three other relationships and by the method of indirect proof."