The turbulent history of Iran and the West: a CIA coup, a hijacked revolution, and an aborted nuclear deal

LondonTo understand Iran, it is necessary to delve into its ancient history and its turbulent contemporary era. Persia, during the Achaemenid Empire (550-330 BC), was perhaps the first great superpower in history. That golden age turned into decline under the Qajar dynasty, a Turkic monarchy that ruled Persia from 1789 to 1925 and had to accept the fragmentation of the country under pressure from the British and Russian empires. The Anglo-Russian Pact of 1907 and the discovery of oil in 1908 sealed this subjugation and transformed the territory into a colony. de facto Subordinated to the interests of London and Moscow, the military coup of Reza Khan Pahlavi, initiated in 1921, opened a period of transition that culminated in 1924-25 with the establishment of autocratic modernization. The most serious attempt at real sovereignty in the 20th century was the nationalization of oil by Prime Minister Mohamed Mossadegh in the 1950s, which challenged this. By crushing this democratic and reformist path in 1953 through a plot orchestrated by the CIA and MI6, the West restored the Shah's absolute power and exterminated the secular opposition. The systematic repression by SAVAK, the Shah's political police, ultimately propelled the 1979 Revolution irreversibly toward religious fundamentalism. However, it cannot be forgotten that the United States, France, and the United Kingdom played a key role in the return of Ayatollah Ali Khomeini in 1979 as a means of opposing Soviet expansion in the region.

Below is a brief timeline of the stormy relations between Iran and the West:

The Achaemenid Empire (550 BC–330 BC)

It is the first and largest of the ancient Persian empires, founded by Cyrus the Great. It was the first superpower global, under which Persia dominated from India to Greece and Egypt. It was characterized by a highly efficient centralized administration (the satrapies) and, surprisingly for the time, by a policy of religious and cultural tolerance toward the conquered peoples. It ended with the conquest of Alexander the Great.

The colonial division and the curse of oil

1907:Britain and Russia sign a secret agreement to divide Iran into spheres of influence. Iran effectively ceases to be a sovereign state: the north falls under Russian control and the south under British control.

1908The curse of oil. A large oil field is discovered in Masjed Soleyman. The Anglo-Persian Oil Company (APOC) is founded. Control of the resource passes into British hands and becomes London's number one strategic priority.

1911The strangulation of democracy. American expert Morgan Shuster, hired by the Iranian Parliament to stabilize the finances, is expelled under Russian and British pressure. This demonstrates that the major powers do not want an administratively strong Iran.

The Pahlavi Era: Centralization and repression

1921-1925Reza Jan Pahlavi, founder of the dynasty, has British support to curb Russian Bolshevism with a strong manwhich is what he himself represents. Colonel Reza Jan Pahlavi was crowned king in 1925, finally ending the Qajar dynasty. He initiated an authoritarian modernization of the country.

1941During World War II, the British and Soviets invaded Iran to secure its oil supply. The Shah, Reza Khan Pahlavi, was sent into exile, and his son, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, was installed on the throne as a more malleable monarch.

The democratic uprising and the nationalization of oil

1951Mohamed Mossadegh, leader of the National Front, was elected prime minister thanks to overwhelming support from the Iranian Parliament (Majlis), fueled by his popularity as leader of the movement for the nationalization of oil: the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company had been nationalized by Parliament in 1951. With the support of the popular Tudeh Party, he emerged as the voice demanding national dignity. Great Britain responded to the nationalization with a naval and economic blockade of the country. Iran sought a path to social progress and political independence, free from the tutelage of Western powers.

1953Fearing an Iranian alliance with the USSR, and seeking to regain control of oil, the CIA and MI6 orchestrated a coup, launching Operation Ajax. Mossadegh was overthrown, the Shah regained absolute power, and a reign of terror was established against any leftist opposition.

The Shah's Dictatorship and the Political Vacuum

1953-1960s: With the help of the CIA, the country's left wing is exterminated with the dreadedSavak (the Shah's secret police). Members of the Tudeh Party and socialists are systematically persecuted, tortured, and executed. The path to socialism is completely blocked.

1963Under the so-called White Revolution, the Shah initiated a series of reforms of forced Westernization. By exterminating the political left and the trade unions, the only opposition that survived—because it organized itself clandestinely in mosques—was religious, actions that would incubate the next stage.

From Monarchy to Theocracy

1978The Popular Uprising.The accumulated repression under Savak and decades of foreign interference provoked a massive revolt. The prior extermination of the left (Tudeh) and the nationalists of Mossadegh left the clergy as the only organized force capable of channeling the population's discontent.

1979: (January-February): The transition and the role of the West. Faced with the inevitable fall of the Shah, powers such as the US, the UK, and France facilitated the return of Ayatollah Ali Khomeini from exile, mistakenly perceiving him as a bulwark against Soviet communism.

1979 (November): The US embassy hostage crisis. The revolution radicalizes and breaks with its Western support. Islamic students storm the US embassy in Tehran and hold 52 hostages for 444 days. This act humiliates Washington, ends liberal influence in Iran, and consolidates the theocratic dictatorship and anti-American rhetoric.

The Islamic Republic versus the West

1980-1988Saddam Hussein's Iraq invades Iran. The US, under Ronald Reagan, ends up supporting Baghdad. Eight years of war and hundreds of thousands of deaths.

1984Washington declares Iran a state sponsor of terrorism and imposes sanctions.

1989Ayatollah Ali Khamenei succeeds Khomeini as supreme leader, although he does not have the qualifications as a theologian.

1992-1997: Bill Clinton imposes new sanctions for curbing Iran's chemical and nuclear programs and strangling Iranian oil.

2002: George W. Bush includes Iran in the Axis of Evil. Uranium enrichment at the Natanz plant is revealed.

Failed agreement

2015: Barack Obama finalizes a nuclear agreement with Iran and the other Security Council powers, plus Germany and the EU, which puts the Iranian nuclear program under international control to ensure that it will not have military purposes.

2018-2020: Donald Trump withdrew from the pact and reactivated the "maximum pressure" policy. In 2020, he ordered the assassination of Iranian Revolutionary Guard leader Qasem Soleimani.

2023The Hamas attack on October 7, the Israeli genocide in Gaza, the Houthi attacks, and the clash with Hezbollah have heightened tensions. Tehran has launched nearly 200 missiles at Israel.

2025-26: Israel, with US support, launched an attack on Iran in June. After 12 days, a ceasefire was agreed upon, and the US and Iran began nuclear negotiations. While a new round of talks was being arranged, on February 28, Tel Aviv and Washington launched a joint attack on Iran, dropping thousands of bombs and killing Ali Khamenei.