The Limits Of Culture ─ Islam And Foreign Policy

In recent years, analysts of world affairs have suggested that cultural interests --ethnicity, religion, and ideology -- play a primary role in patterns of conflict and alliances, andthat in the future the "clash of civilizations" will dominate international relations. The Limits ofCulture explores the effect of culture on foreign policy, focusing on countries in thegeopolitically important Caspian region and paying particular attention to those states that haveidentified themselves as Islamic republics -- Iran, Taliban Afghanistan, and Pakistan.Thecontributors to The Limits of Culture find that, contrary to the currently popular view, culture israrely more important than other factors in shaping the foreign policies of countries in the Caspianregion. They find that ruling regimes do not necessarily act according to their own rhetoric. Iran,for example, can conduct policies that contradict the official state ideology without sufferingdomestic retribution. Also, countries frequently align with one another when they do not sharereligious beliefs or cultural heritage. For example, Christian Armenia cooperates on trade andsecurity with non-Christian Iran. Cultural identities, the contributors find, are flexible enough toenable states to pursue a wide range of policies that are consistent with their material interests.As the essays in The Limits of Culture make clear, the emerging foreign policies of the Caspianstates present a significant challenge to the culturalist argument.