ABSTRACT
In this chapter, I review the history of Russian–Iranian relations in the Soviet and the post-Soviet eras, analyzing the relationship in discrete periods for the years 1987–2013. While this chapter seeks to provide the unfamiliar reader with a rich summary of bilateral historical relations, it simultaneously functions as a platform for the development of the composite, dependent variable of General Political Association (GPA) covering the post-Soviet era. As discussed previously, the composite variable of GPA measures distinctly political relations between the Russian Federation and the Islamic Republic of Iran according to three substantive issue areas on a year-by-year basis. The three areas of focus are: (1) defense relations—emphasizing the annual trade in conventional weapons; (2) interstate development assistance—here treated as annual Russian assistance to Iranian nuclear development; and (3) territorial agreement—specifically referring to the annual status quo of agreement in post-Soviet delimitation of the Caspian Sea.
