Introduction
The Middle East holds a unique position in contemporary international relations. Its geopolitical location at the junction of three continents, with access to crucial communication routes, puts it in the spotlight for global powers. The uniqueness of the Middle East unquestionably strengthens its resource potential, which is not without significance for energy-consuming, global economies.
The history of the empires’ feuds in the Middle East has a thousand-year tradition. Naturally, rivalry has also become an inherent feature of contemporary international relations. The region poses a challenge to the interests of the main players in the international arena who shape a specific balance of power through their involvement in the area based on their potential and constantly changing possibilities of action. Each of the power centers, through implementing the principles of its foreign policy and security strategy, strives to maximize its power and limit the activity of its rivals. States are forced to act and build their potential primarily due to the anarchic nature of international relations and uncertainty as to the intentions of other entities. Willingness to withstand the chaos of international relations, distrust, and seeking out security guarantees lays the basis of strategic thinking about the process of shaping their power and position. According to Mearsheimer’s theory of offensive realism, the ultimate goal is to obtain and maintain their full dominance in the structure of the international system, which means being at the top of the hierarchy of the aforementioned relations.1
