![]() | The International Politics of the Persian Gulf Subjects: Persian Gulf Region -- Foreign relations -- 21st century; Persian Gulf Region -- Foreign economic relations -- 21st century; Persian Gulf Region -- Politics and government -- 21st century; Persian Gulf Region -- Strategic aspects; National security -- Per; For much of the contemporary history of the Middle East, the Persian Gulf has stood at the center of the region's strategic significance. At the same time, the Gulf has been wracked by political instability and tension. As far back as the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Britain zeroed in on the Persian Gulf as a critical passageway to its crown jewel, India, and entered into protectorate agreements with local ruling families, thus bestowing on them international legitimacy and, eventually, the resources and support necessary to ascend to kingships. Today, the region is undergoing profound changes that range from rapid economic and infrastructural development to tumultuous social and cultural transformations. Far from eroding the area's political significance, these changes have only accentuated rivalries and tensions and have brought to the forefront new challenges to international security and stability. Mehran Kamrava is director of the Center for International and Regional Studies at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service in Qatar. He is the author of numerous books, including, most recently, Iran's Intellectual Revolution and The Modern Middle East: A Political History since the First World War. |
![hidden image for function call](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/1x1.png)