This study examines the problem of the Muslim Brotherhood’s (MB) perspective on international relations, from an angle that focuses on the tension between their ideological foundations, as articulated in their literature and discourse, on the one hand, and the pragmatic tendency that has characterized their actual practices, on the other hand.
The relevance of examining this problem stems from three considerations: First, the MB presents itself as the representative of true Islam, claiming to speak on behalf of all followers of Islam around the world. For this reason, the group has established an international organization that unites the various MB branches and encompasses a large number of associations and institutions operating in many Muslim and non-Muslim countries. Second, the MB is an activist group that uses multiple and diverse tools and methods of action and influence. It possesses enormous resources that enable it to pursue political goals, whether at the level of positioning itself in the political arena within individual countries or at the level of its ambitions to reach power and assume the reins of government. These ambitions indeed transcend national borders. Third, the modern concept of international relations does not only include the relationships between states, but also those between states and non-state actors.
It is thus legitimate to examine the MB issue in international relations and to deconstruct the backgrounds of the group’s perspective and the referential frameworks that shape its approach to this domain. These are deeply rooted in the ideological arsenal built upon the speeches of the group’s founder and guide, Hassan Al-Banna, and subsequently expanded by the works of its advocates and theorists in later stages.
On another level, the matter requires us to focus our attention on the reality of the MB’s international relations through their practices and the extensive network of relationships they have built with many countries in their history of nearly a century, particularly with active and influential countries in the system of international relations.
