For what purposes did Rome conquer the Mediterranean? Which states were conquered by Rome?

The conquests of Rome in the western Mediterranean are associated with his confrontation with Carthage in the III-II centuries BC.

The conquests in the eastern Mediterranean are associated with the expansion into the Hellenistic states (Greece, Egypt, Ptolemies, Syria).

In addition to Carthage, the Romans conquered: Egypt of the Ptolemies (the last ruler was Cleopatra), Syria (in 64 it was captured by Pompey, where the Seleucid dynasty ruled there), the Achaean Union (conquered by 146 BC).

In 67 BC. the Romans captured Crete, as its ruler supported Pontus during the third Mithridates war.