The effects of the US-Iran rivalry on Iraq politics after September 11

The middle East has been a sovereign area for many states with its various features for centuries and has hosted many wars. Iraq is depicted as a miniature of the Middle East in the study. Iraq has always hosted wars with its rich mineral resources, cultural diversity, history of civilizations and holy places. After the September 11 attacks, these two states became more unstable than before, with the United States opening a war on global terrorism and invading Afghanistan and then Iraq. After the invasion of Iraq, Iran which was in the balance of power with Iraq, got rid of the balance of power and tried to establish influence by using this population in places where the Shiite population is concentrated, by turning to regional domination policies. In the study, the rivalry between Iran, which wanted to establish regional hegemony after the US invasion, and the US, in the territory of Iraq, was discussed in the historical scene and the effect of the developments after this invasion on the categorization of Iraq after the September 11 attacks and the competition in the country on Iraq politics. In the study, answers were sought to the questions of what are the positive and negative effects of the USA-Iran rivalry on Iraqi politics, and what is the effect of the competition on Iraq's failure as a state. The aim of the study is to reveal the effect of the US invasion of Iraq after the September 11 attacks and the competition in the country on Iraqi politics. In the study, a literature review was made and written and electronic sources were used. After the USA invaded Iraq after the September 11 attacks, Iran, which got rid of the balance of power, tried to establish influence in the Iraq territory and entered into competition with the USA. There are many reasons for categorizing Iraq as a failed state today, but it has been concluded that the US-Iran rivalry is the most fundamental reason because its effect is interactive with other reasons. In addition, it was concluded that foreign states' competing with other foreign states for their interests on a piece of land made these states a "failed state".