Identifying the drivers of the military influence of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the West Asia region

Objective: The main purpose of this article is to identify the drivers of the military influence of the Islamic Republic of Iran from a geopolitical point of view in the West Asian region. Methodology: This research is descriptive-analytical in terms of its fundamental purpose and nature and method. Upstream documents and library sources have been used to identify the drivers of military influence. Qualitative data analysis based on the content analysis method (MAXQDA), which led to the identification of more than 122 basic themes. Findings: After combining and summarizing, these basic themes have been reduced to 63 central themes and finally 13 main categories have been extracted as key drivers and finally, their impact and effectiveness coefficients have been measured by taking advantage of the opinion of experts and by using Micmac software. Originality: The results and findings of this research show that the development of the Islamic Republic of Iran's military influence in the West Asian region is very important, and its effective drivers are, in order of priority, the conclusion of military-security agreements, the possession of unconventional weapons, the allocation of military budgets, and the expansion of diplomacy. Defense, establishing military bases, the ability to produce military equipment, having advanced weapons, using intelligent power, sending military aid, sending military dependents, using weapons and military equipment, selling military weapons and the number of military personnel.