Essay Sample on Political and Diplomatic History of US-Iranian Relations

Introduction

The United States foreign policy in the Middle East started in the first year of the U.S existence. The American influence however extended during the Second World War. During the Cold War, the impact of American policies in the Middle East attempted to prevent the dominance of the Soviet Union in the region through supporting anti-communist regimes and at the same time backing Israel against the Arab nations that were mainly sponsored by the Soviet. The influence of the United States in the Middle East extended to Iran (Afary et al., 23). According to the above documentary, the United States has been involved actively in Iranian domestic politics. The United States government covertly sustained a coup which led to the removal of Mohammad Mossadeq, the Iranian nationalist leader who impacted the nationalization drive in the year 1951. According to the documentary, the political and diplomatic ties of the US and Iran is found on the re-institution of Shah in Iran. During the time, Washington started to alienate the increasingly influential cleric class which later on, would help in the removal of the monarch in the Iranian revolution. The United States employed its diplomatic relations with the Iranian following the seizure of the American hostages in the town of Tehran in the year 1979.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

For many years, the United States has been able to control the political activities in Iran. With immense influence through funding, they have been able to gain control of Iran through supporting certain leaders into power. For example, the United States, in collaboration with the British intelligence agencies, coordinated a coup to overthrow Iran's democratically elected Prime Minister who focused on nationalizing entire Iran's oil industry.

United States' Consistency in Its Relationship with Iran

Right from the time that the US started meddling in Iran, they have been consistent regarding the policies and demands. The United States government saw the need to gain full control of the political systems knowing very well that by installing leaders of their own choice, they would be able to have absolute control of the country. As a result, the election of every leader after the other has been under the influence of the United States. While engaging in the diplomatic talks, the United States Security Council has over the years studied the political atmosphere in Iran to establish patterns of elections and the demands of electorates.

In the year 1979, the United States backed Shah to flee the country, a situation that enabled Khomeini to seize power. All the above political plans were put in place by the US to ensure that they have a complete political influence that would enable the control Iran to date. In some cases, amidst the US diplomatic activities in Iran, the relationship has sometimes deteriorated due to some leaders who are anti-west. However, this has not been persistent due to the immensely influence of the US in the region. When the relationship got sour, the US government often work with the opposition leaders to regain influence. In the year 2003, after the earthquake that killed over fifty thousand people in Iran, United States sent the humanitarian aid to assist the victims of the tragedy. In the recent past, Iran was involved in the development of nuclear plants, a situation that forced the United States to intervene as a nation with veto power. Based on the documentary, the United States has thus been consistent in its relationship with the west both during the times of war, revolutions and in times of tragedies.

Involvement of US in the Iranian Revolution

Just before the revolution in Iran, the United States had absolute control over Iran. Their power over Iran enables them to propel Mohammad Shah, a charismatic Iranian premier to the similar power. The United States did not make the right calls before the Iranian revolution. First, they failed to resonate with the demands of the people; by working with Mohammad Shah, they were unable to win the support of the people of Iran. In other words, the revolution was fueled by the decision of the United States to work closely with the Shah. The revolution was partly because of the westernization, secularization, and modernization efforts of Western-backed Shah. It also resulted from a more popular reaction to the shortcomings of the ancient regimes and social injustices (Haas 17). The common Iranian people saw the Shah's regime as pro-west; thus Shah was perceived as the puppet to the western powers. During the reign of Shah, United States exploited natural resources blatantly. On the other hand, due to the support from the west, Shah became oppressive, corrupt and brutal, his administration also suffered from basic functional failures such as inflation.

Therefore, before the revolution, the United States did not make the right decision by supporting Mohammad Shah's leadership. Their support to the above leader led to the revolution. Immediately after the Iranian revolution, the USA still, did not make the right decision by imposing sanctions Iran. The Iranians believe that sanctions were meant to oppress the incumbent government, a situation that further fueled the anti-west sentiments. Additionally, immediately after the revolution, the United States supported Iraq when they invaded Iran, a situation that led to a permanent disagreement between the US and Iran.

Has The US Been A Force For Good Or Contributed To The Crisis In The Middle East?

The United States of America has contributed immensely to the crisis in the Middle East. In other words, they have contributed significantly to the wars and political instabilities that are currently experienced in the region. First, they created a political crisis to gain economic interest. They had a great interest in the natural resources in the region, specifically oil. Secondly, they interfered with the democratic processes by imposing the leaders of their choice who would support their economic interest in the region. Just before the revolution, the United States government supported a corrupt and incompetent Shah's regime since he was pro-west and would allow the exploitative trade between the United States and Iran (Naficy, 13). Thirdly, the United States is an enemy to the Middle East since they tend working with the opposition to forcefully overthrow the governments or interfere with the political activities of the democratically elected leaders. From the documentary, it is clear that the US government was providing weapons and support to Iraq to invade Iran just after their point man, Mohammad Shah was removed from power through revolution. The United States often want to establish political instability in the region so that they can acquire natural resources such as oil which is mainly found in the region.

Works Cited

Afary, Janet, and Kevin B. Anderson. Foucault and the Iranian revolution: Gender and the seductions of Islamism. University of Chicago Press, 2010.

Haas, Mark L. The Clash of Ideologies: Middle Eastern Politics and American Security. New York: Oxford University Press, 2012. Print.

Naficy, Hamid. "Nonfiction fiction: documentaries on Iran." Iranian Studies 12.3-4 (1979): 217-238.