Strategic Assessment

Competition between the Middle East regional powers is often conducted indirectly or in the territories of third countries. The need to intervene in third party and often distant theaters, and to project force on non-bordering regional competitors - which was not the focus of the regional powers' traditional force buildup - has received more attention in recent years, and focuses, inter alia, on establishing military bases in territories of third countries and on expanding the use of non-state proxies. These trends give expression to deeper issues, including the challenge facing regional powers in acquiring operational access to their areas of interest. This joins their growing need for force projection far from their borders and protection of interests in the competition for regional influence, inter alia, against the backdrop of the serial collapse of Arab states that has left an extensive power vacuum in many territories.