Strategic Studies Quarterly

Abstract Although the geopolitical and security concerns have a great importance to diplomatic action and strategic decision making, the Saudi politicians have recently acted in a way that mare than these concerns, it is their cultural norms and identity that affects those decisions and this shapes their strategic culture. Given the importance of the said fact, the paper attempts to provide a clear picture of the Saudis strategic culture and in this way the main question is that what those elements and their influences are in this strategic culture. To answer these questions first a theoretical framework is offered to explain the strategic culture and then the elements and foundation of the Saudi strategic culture are identified and finally their influence on this culture will be discussed.

Abstract Strategic culture affects statesmen, elite attitudes and even the whole public perception and has the capacity to determine behaviors and actions of them in different areas. So knowing the constituting elements of state identity, among them the strategic culture, has a good role in understanding state actions, especially great powers like china and U.S.A. This article tries to distinguish constitutive components of strategic culture of U.S. and china and claim that U.S culture is offensive and Chinese one has defensive character. Authors try to compare tow cases and describe similarities and differences of them; at last they explain these cultures impacts on U.S. and china Middle East policy.  

Abstract The purpose of paper does explore approaches of three generations of thinkers as three discourses in strategic culture. The strategic culture is used as an independent variable for explanting strategic behaviors at first. Appearing this conception in strategic behaviors has been meaning the acceptance of non- material and structural factors in analyzing it. In three decades made three discourses that all emphases on relationship between strategic culture and behavior, albeit reached the different conclusion from it.It is impossible in the first discourse analyzing the behavior without strategic culture, second one introduces the strategic culture as a means and instrument of running the strategy, the relationship between culture and strategic behavior in the third one does discuss strategic culture role in the context of strategic behavior.