Abstract. The article analyzes confrontation between two lead states of the Middle East – Saudi Arabia and Iran – and its impact on the situation in the region. This confrontation has deep historical, ideological, economic, political and cultural roots. The 1978–79 Islamic Revolution in Iran raised the tensions with Saudi Arabia to a new level of the fight for spiritual leadership in the region. Today this confrontation most evidently manifests itself in various conflict spots across the region ranging from Syria to Yemen. The US policy is also analyzed as a cross-cutting line affecting both states’ behavior in the international arena and in the region.