Foreign relations of Iran

In Iran, Ayatollah Khomeini's revolutionary regime initiated sharp changes from the foreign policy pursued by the Shah, particularly in reversing the country's orientation toward the West. In the Middle East, Iran's only significant ally has been Syria, but Iran has made great strides in improving relations with its Gulf neighbors, particularly Saudi Arabia. Iran's regional goals are dominated by wanting to establish a leadership role, curtail the presence of the United States and other outside powers, and build trade ties. In broad terms, Iran's "Islamic foreign policy" emphasizes:

• Vehement anti-U.S. and anti-Israel stances;
• Eliminating outside influence in the region;
• Support for Muslim political movements abroad; and
• A great increase in diplomatic contacts with developing countries.

Despite these guidelines, however, bilateral relations are frequently confused and contradictory due to Iran's oscillation between pragmatic and ideological concerns.

The country's foreign relations since the revolution have been tumultuous. In addition to the U.S. hostage crisis, tension between Iran and Iraq escalated in September 1980, when Iraq invaded Iran. Much of the dispute centered around sovereignty over the waterway between the two countries, the Shatt al-Arab, although underlying causes included each nation's overt desire for the overthrow of the other's government. Iran demanded the withdrawal of Iraqi troops from Iranian territory and the return to the status quo ante for the Shatt al-Arab as established under the 1975 Algiers Agreement signed by Iraq and Iran. After 8 punishing years of war, in July 1988, Iran agreed to UN Security Council Resolution 598, which called for a cease-fire. The cease-fire was implemented on August 20, 1988; neither nation had made any real gains in the war.

Iran's relations with many of its Arab neighbors have been strained by Iranian attempts to spread its Islamic revolution. In 1981, Iran supported a plot to overthrow the Bahraini government. In 1983, Iran expressed support for Shi'ites who bombed Western embassies in Kuwait, and in 1987, Iranian pilgrims rioted during the Hajj (pilgrimage) in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Nations with strong fundamentalist movements, such as Egypt and Algeria, also mistrust Iran. Iran backs Hizballah, Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command[?]--all groups violently opposed to the Arab-Israeli peace process.

Relations with west European nations have taken a turn for the better with Iran attempting to present itself as a more reliable partner in diplomatic and commerical affairs.

Iran maintains regular diplomatic and commercial relations with Russia and the former Soviet Republics . Both Iran and Russia believe they have important national interests at stake in developments in Central Asia and the Transcaucasus, particularly on energy resources from the Caspian Sea. Russian and other sales of military equipment and technology concern Iran's neighbors and the United States.

Iran spends about 4% of its GDP on its military. Branches of its military include ground forces, a navy, an air force, and Revolutionary Guard Corps. The Iran-Iraq war took a heavy toll on these military forces. Iran is trying to modernize its military and acquire weapons of mass destruction; it does not yet have, but continues to seek, nuclear capabilities (according to US and Israel's claims).

U.S.-Iranian relations

In 1953, Iran's nationalist Prime Minister Mohhamed Moussadeq began a period of rapid power consolidation, which eventually led to his exiling of Iran's constitutional monarch, the Shah. The United States and Britain, through a now-admitted covert operation of the CIA, helped organize protests to overthrow Moussadeq and return the Shah to Iran. After his return, Iran's fledgling attempts at democracy quickly descended into dictatorship as the Shah dismantled the constituional limitations on his office and began to rule as an absolute monarch.

During his regin, the Shah recieved significant American support, frequently making state visits to the White House and earning praise from numerous American Presidents. The Shah's close ties to Washington and his bold agenda of rapidly Westernizing of Iran soon began to infuriate certain segments of the Iranian population, especially the hardline Islamic conservatives.

In 1979 Iranians revolted and the Shah was ousted for a second time. The violently anti-American Ayatollah Khomeni became Iran's new leader, and soon began issuing vicious rhetoric against the United States, describing the country as the "Great Satan" and a "nation of infidels."

The American administration under President Jimmy Carter refused to give the Shah any further support and expressed no interest in attempting to return him to power. A significant embarrassment for Carter occurred when the Shah, now suffering from cancer, requested entry into the United States for treatment. Carter reluctantly agreed, but the move only re-inforced Iranian notions that the former monarch was an American puppet.

On November 4, 1979, militant Iranian students occupied the American embassy in Tehran with the support of Ayatollah Khomeini. Fifty-two Americans were held hostage for 444 days. On April 7, 1980, the United States broke diplomatic relations with Iran, and on April 24, 1981, the Swiss Government assumed representation of U.S. interests in Tehran. Iranian interests in the United States are represented by the Pakistani Government.

In accordance with the Algiers declaration[?] of January 20, 1981, the Iran-U.S. Claims Tribunal[?] (located in The Hague, Netherlands) was established for the purpose of handling claims of U.S. nationals against Iran and of Iranian nationals against the United States. U.S. contact with Iran through The Hague covers only legal matters.

Commercial relations between Iran and the United States are restricted by U.S. sanctions and consist mainly of Iranian purchases of food and medical products and U.S. purchases of carpets and food. The U.S. Government prohibits most trade with Iran.

There are serious obstacles to improved relations between the two countries. The U.S. Government defines five areas of objectionable Iranian behavior:

• Iranian efforts to acquire nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction;
• Its involvement in international terrorism;
• Its support for violent opposition to the Middle East peace process;
• Its threats and subversive activities against its neighbors; and
• Its dismal human rights record.

The U.S. believes that normal relations are impossible until Iran's behavior changes. Iran believes that normal relations are impossible until the United States' behavior changes. However, the United States has offered to enter into dialogue with authorized representatives of the Iranian Government without preconditions. The Iranian Government has not accepted this offer. The United States has made clear that it does not seek to overthrow the Iranian Government but will continue to pressure Iran to change its behavior.

Disputes - international: Iran and Iraq restored diplomatic relations in 1990 but are still trying to work out written agreements settling outstanding disputes from their eight-year war concerning border demarcation, prisoners-of-war, and freedom of navigation and sovereignty over the Shatt-al-Arab[?] waterway; Iran occupies two islands in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE: Lesser Tunb (called Tunb as Sughra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Kuchek in Persian by Iran) and Greater Tunb (called Tunb al Kubra in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Tonb-e Bozorg in Persian by Iran); Iran jointly administers with the UAE an island in the Persian Gulf claimed by the UAE (called Abu Musa in Arabic by UAE and Jazireh-ye Abu Musa in Persian by Iran) - over which Iran has taken steps to exert unilateral control since 1992, including access restrictions and a military build-up on the island; the UAE has garnered significant diplomatic support in the region in protesting these Iranian actions; Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan

Illicit drugs: despite substantial interdiction efforts, Iran remains a key transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin to Europe; domestic consumption of narcotics remains a persistent problem and Iranian press reports estimate that there are at least 1.2 million drug users in the country

See also : Iran