Iran’s Security Strategy: Balancing Defensive Deterrents and Offensive Proxy Warfare

The objective of this study is to ascertain how proxy warfare is integrated into Iran’s security strategy. The argument is based on an analysis of Iran’s security approach, which rests on three main pillars: its ballistic missile arsenal, nuclear program, and reliance on proxy warfare. While the first two is predominantly defensive in nature, the use of proxy warfare includes offensive or forward defense elements. Iran has actively engaged in various conflicts in the Middle East through the use of proxies. The deployment of proxy groups allows Iran to exert influence over conflicts while maintaining distance and pursuing its own objectives. Consequently, proxy warfare reinforces the other two pillars. Moreover, historically the three pillars of Iran’s security strategy can be traced back to the era of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. This reveals that there is a continuity in Iran’s security policies despite the alteration and transformation caused by the 1979 Islamic Revolution. This contiunity contributes to the formation of long term political patterns that increase the effectiveness of the the three pillars of the security strategy mentioned in the study.