Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1 PhD Candidate in North American Studies, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
2 Associate Professor of American Studies, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
3 Professor of Diplomacy and International Relations, School of International Relations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
This article examines the U.S. presidents’ securitization and desecuritization of post-revolutionary Iran. Employing securitization theory as its theoretical framework and qualitative content analysis as its research method, this study analyzes 104 paramount instances of U.S. presidential rhetoric including State of the Union addresses, speeches delivered during the United Nations General Assembly's General Debates, and National Security Strategy reports. The analysis shows how successive U.S. presidents have framed Iran as an existential threat across multiple security sectors—military, political, societal, economic, and emerging cybersecurity—to justify their extraordinary policies regarding that country. A key finding of the research is the distinction between U.S. presidents’ securitization of the Iranian state and the Iranian nation, which first emerged during George W. Bush’s first term. Moreover, the study identifies continuity and change in U.S. securitization and desecuritization of Iran over the past four decades, conceptualizing them into two overarching frameworks: the Realist approach and the Constructivist approach. This research introduces the novel concept of Positive Securitization, or Desecuritizing Securitization, as a new addition to the theoretical framework of securitization theory and highlights its application during the Obama administration. This research provides a detailed understanding of U.S. presidential rhetoric and the gradual construction of Iran’s threat image.
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