The Rise of Iran in the Middle East :Between Fiction and Reality

Iran’s growing power has recently come to the fore in the international media. Countless articles refer to the ‘new empire’ that Tehran, taking advantage of the chaos in the Middle East, is building. The Iranian government has taken this rhetoric and adopted it as its own. According to Gen. Yahya Rahim Safavi, Iran has not been as powerful as it is today since the reigns of Cyrus and Xerxes. However, in contrast to this rhetoric, other commentators observe that Iran only has an “empire on paper.” How can we disentangle these conflicting visions? The Islamic Republic of Iran can count on several assets to bolster its regional clout, but the influence it seeks to wield is also subject to major limitations. In order to navigate the many and conflicting arguments that international media air vis-à-vis the Iranian “empire,” both Iran’s strengths and weaknesses need to be addressed in a coherent and systematic manner.