Iran

        Any discussion of Iran would be incomplete without a sufficient understanding of Iran’s history, which spans from the 8th century BC to the current date. Yet the Iran we all know and love today is coming to an end. There is a crossroad that this theocratic state has come to. This figurative crossroad is in reality the decision most 21st century world powers have to deliberate – the question of nuclear power, or more specifically, its use as a weapon of mass destruction…

I.         A Historical Background

        The Persian Empire started respectfully in the 8th century under Deioces, Prince and the first king of the Median Empire. He united seven Median tribes and became their Judge and leader, and in doing so, founded the Empire that would slowly, but surely, lead to the current Iranian nation. The pinnacle of the Ancient World was, by extension, the pinnacle of the Persian Empire. Under the Iranian Achaemenid Empire (558–330 BCE), total landmass that was expropriated exceeded approximately 6.5 million square kilometers, making this empire the largest one in the Ancient World. These dynastical empires followed one another until the fateful Sassanid Empire. At the time of this empire, a merchant by the name of Muhammad retreated to a cave dwelling, in the western part of what is now Saudi Arabia, during the day for relaxation and meditation. It is there that he historically received word from God that he was now a prophet, and his sole job in life was to preach that word until the world was united under him. After his pilgrimage to Mecca, his 12 year rule as the Muslim ruler, and his death, there was great discontent among the remaining followers, who were now leaderless.

There was also confusion over who would rule this group and inherit Muham-mad’s role. The Sunni Muslims today believe that first four caliphs – Muhammad’s successors – rightfully took his place as the leaders of the Islamic religion. The Shiite Muslims believe fervently that in fact these caliphs were illegitimate rulers. Muhammad had a relative, Ali ibn Abi Talib, Muhammad's cousin and husband of his daughter, Fatimah. Shiites believe he was the first of the legitimate Imams (an Islamic religious) and was the true successor to Muhammad who was appointed by God as his prophet, and thus reject the legitimacy of the first three caliphs. This ostensibly minor, albeit controversial, difference fundamentally separates these two sects of one of the largest (by population) religions in the world. It also separates Iran from the majority of traditional Muslims, as Shiites make up only 12-15% of total Muslims, with the rest constituting of Sunni Muslims.

The Persian Empire had trouble functioning for the most part (it was between the years 643 and 650 that these differences in semantics arose) and for the next millennia, the once unconquerable empire suffered invasion after invasion from Mongols, Turks, and even the Russians. At the turn of the 20th century, the world endured a deadly and costly World War. Iran’s role arose out of its strategic geo-political position – right between Afghanistan and the belligerents of the war, including the Ottoman, Russian, and British Empire. In 1925, Reza Shah Pahlavi seized power from the Qajars (a dynasty ruling Iran from 1794 to 1925 under the Qajar family name) and established the new Pahlavi dynasty, the last Persian monarchy before the establishment of the Islamic Republic as a conclusion of the “Glorious Islamic Revolution” in 1979.

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II.        The Iranian - United States Relationship (1960-1979)

        Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was the Shah (Islamic king) of Iran after his father Reza Kahn, the ruler of the Pahlavi Empire until British and USSR police officials arrested him, citing his refusal to expel German engineers and technicians in Iran, all of whom were accused by Britain and the USSR as spies of Germany with missions to sabotage British oil facilities in southwestern Iran as a reason for the arrest. Reza Pahlavi tried developing diplomatic relations with the United States.  He concentrated on reviving the army and ensuring that it would remain ...

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