Iran in the Whirlpool of the ‘look to the east’ policy: how dignity and wisdom are sacrificed to expediency

Since 1979, Iran's foreign policy has been framed within a specific jurisprudential framework, consisting of three principles: dignity (izzat), wisdom (hikmat), and expediency (maslahat). These principles guide Iran's foreign policy and combine ideology and pragmatism. Since the 1980s, the dynamic interplay of dignity, wisdom, and expediency has prioritised the 'Look to the East' policy in Iran's agenda. This approach can be considered a sign of Tehran's procedural pragmatism in foreign policy. However, in the last decade, the extreme pursuit of this policy has led to these principles conflicting with one another, undermining Iran's foreign policy identity towards the East. In this context, we seek to answer two key questions: How has the dynamic interplay among dignity, Wisdom, and expediency led to the emergence of the 'Look to the East' policy? How does the emergence of this policy violate Tehran's procedural pragmatism towards the East? Relying on an analytical framework of procedural pragmatism in the light of dignity, wisdom, and expediency, we argue that the Look East policy is a manifestation of pragmatism, a procedure adopted by Tehran, based on the principle of expediency, to restore dignity vis-à-vis the West at the levels of leaders' perceptions and domestic-regional policy. However, over time, this expediency has compromised the principle of dignity, leading to Iran's excessive dependence on Russia and China in political, economic, and security spheres. The findings of this research reveal that dependency on the East, influenced by the lack of balanced relations with the West and the specific perceptions of Iran's leaders regarding engagement with the East, simultaneously violates two identity-based principles – dignity and wisdom. These principles, emblematic of Iran's ideological foundations and material interests, have been undermined by China and Russia, thereby violating Tehran's procedural pragmatism towards the East.