One of the major problems of the US-Iran relations is lack of trust which breeds suspicion between the two parties. The US has accused different Iranian governments of sponsoring terrorism and human rights violations coupled with the attempts to make nuclear bombs in contravention of international law. On the other side, Iran decries the meddling of the US in the country’s affairs including supporting rebel groups to overthrow the government.
Weiner (2007) notes that the mistrust between these two nations goes back to 1953 when a coup backed by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) overthrew an elected Prime Minister, Mohammad Mosaddeq, and replaced him with Pahlavi, a Shah. From this time, Weiner (2007) argues that a “generation of Iranians grew up knowing that the CIA had installed the Shah” (p. 105).
Pahlavi forged closer ties with the US, but the majority of Iranians could not validate the newfound relationship and they accused the Shah of ceding sovereignty to western powers. Critics of the president’s actions were punished harshly which led to the deportation of a respected religious leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, in 1964 (Kinzer, 2010). The good working relationship between Iran and the US continued for five years until 1979 when Pahlavi left the country to seek medical treatment. A month later, Khomeini sneaked back into the country and announced himself the leader of a new Islamic Republic.
The US-Iran relationship deteriorated further in November the same year when a faction of Khomeini’s supporters abducted 52 Americans from the US Embassy in Tehran. President Jimmy Carter ended all diplomatic ties with Iran in April 1980 before a failed military rescue mission to free the hostages (McCutcheon, 2016). Afterward, the US imposed sanctions against Iran and this nature of the relationship has persisted up to date. This paper explores the mistrust that continues to define the US-Iran relationship for over four decades.
The Cold US-Iran Relationship
Since 1980, successive US administrations have imposed numerous sanctions against Iran as a way of compelling the country to meet some demands. In other words, the two countries have not had a mutual relationship and this aspect has compounded the mistrust that defines the association between them. For instance, in November 1980, Ayatollah reached out to President Carter concerning the release of the American hostages, but an agreement could not be reached (McCutcheon, 2016). However, the Iranians freed the hostages immediately after the incoming US president, Ronald Reagan, took the oath of office in January 1981.
In 1984, President Reagan accused Iran of sponsoring terrorism by supporting Hezbollah, which was allegedly involved in the killing of 241 US military personnel in Beirut the previous year (McCutcheon, 2016). In the 1980s, Iran was involved in a decade-long bloody confrontation with Iraq. In this case, the US-supported Iraq to protect oil its interests in the Persian Gulf. In 1988, 290 Iranians were killed after a US war vessel downed an Iranian commercial plane from an alleged mistaken identity (McCutcheon, 2016). The Iranians termed the killing of innocent travelers a ‘barbaric’ act perpetrated in the interest of Western powers, thus intensifying the mistrust between the two countries.
However, the Reagan administration attempted to work with Iran concerning the release of American hostages held in Lebanon. It later emerged that the US discreetly supplied Iran with weapons through the infamous Iran-Contra affair (Wright, 2016). However, even this commercial deal did not create enough trust to improve the relationship between the involved parties. Reagan’s successor, President George Bush, tried to establish working ties after taking office in 1989. Iran would have some sanctions lifted if it helped the US rescue its hostages in Lebanon (Kinzer, 2010). However, this arrangement did not work out.
President Bill Clinton imposed more sanctions on Iran. The election of a moderate Iranian president, Mohammad Khatami, renewed attempts of creating a working relationship between the two nations. The incoming president “called for eroding the ‘wall of mistrust’ between the two countries thus raising hopes of better relations” (McCutcheon, 2016, p. 229). Unfortunately, the September 11, 2001, terrorist bombings in Washington D.C derailed any progress that had been made towards a working relationship between the US and Iran.
President Khatami came out publicly to condemn the attacks and pledged to work closely with the US in bringing the involved culprits to book. However, President Bush could not trust Khatami’s sentiments and motives. In the famous ‘axis of evil’ speech, Bush condemned Iran for patronizing local and international terrorism coupled with pursuits of acquiring nuclear weapons (McCutcheon, 2016).
In 2002, it emerged that Iran had two unidentified nuclear enrichment sites, which confirmed President Bush’s mistrust towards Khatami’s alleged support to fight terrorism. In 2005, the US tried to reach an agreement that would see Iran suspend some of its nuclear activities (McCutcheon, 2016). However, Iran insisted that it could only sign the agreement under the condition that it be allowed to continue with its uranium enrichment program. This condition affected the talks and Khatami’s successor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad branded the US an international bully which effectively shattered any trust between the two countries. The Obama administration renewed talks with President Rouhani concerning shutting down the Iranian nuclear program.
The US has condemned Iran due to the violation of human rights. The United Nations brands Iran as one of the countries with the highest cases of the death penalty (United States Department of State, 2016). In addition, the country continues to restrict freedoms of expression and association. Currently, journalists and activists cannot express their opinions freely for fear of being prosecuted on unclear charges related to national security. Additionally, women’s rights in Iran are almost unrecognized. In 2016, the rate of unemployment amongst women in the country was twice that of men (United States Department of State, 2016). The US is a renowned champion of human rights and women empowerment and the fact that Iran does not seem to pursue the same goals places the two nations on a collision course.
Currently, issues surrounding the Iranian nuclear and Uranium enrichment program are defining relations between the two countries. In 2015, the US joined other world players, including the UK, France, Russia, Germany, and China in the signing of an agreement that would see Iran scale down its nuclear program and be open to international inspections. In return, the US and other countries would lift economic sanctions against Iran.
However, even after the signing of the deal, the relationship between the two nations did not improve significantly. After President Trump took office in 2017, there have not been formal diplomatic relations between the two countries. The current US administration has reiterated that the Iranian nuclear deal signed by President Obama was not in the best interest of the Americans. Consequently, President Trump has indicated that he will decertify the deal before rewriting it to capture more clauses. The Trump administration is not convinced by the Iranian commitment to roll back its nuclear advancement plans.
On the other side, Iran has not shown interest in revisiting the terms of the deal. President Trump has given a new deadline, May 12, 2018, to make changes to the deal before waiving sanctions against Iran. This stance may cause a stalemate if Iran does not agree to any changes. Ultimately, the wall of mistrust between the US and Iran appears to be strengthening. The two sides do not trust each other to forge a working relationship.
Conclusion
The US-Iran relationship is built on mistrust and suspicion between the two parties. Iranians have been skeptical of the US activities in the region since a CIA-backed coup overthrew Mohammad Mosaddeq who was democratically elected by the people. On the other side, the US is not pleased with the allegations linking Iran with terrorist groups in different regions across the Middle East. The September 11, 2001 bombing of the Twin Towers in the US spluttered any efforts that had been made towards creating a working relationship between the two nations. For instance, even though the then Iranian president, Khatami, vowed to work with the US in the fight against terrorism, President Bush could not trust such commitment.
He accused President Khatami of being part of the evil of the axis that tolerates and propagates local and global terrorism. Currently, the Iranian nuclear deal that was signed by the Obama administration defines US-Iran relations. However, President Trump has pointed to flaws in the deal and vowed to make changes to ensure Iran does not pursue nuclear proliferation secretly. On its side, Iran is not pleased with any changes to the deal and this stalemate is threatening any working relationship between the two. Therefore, given the issues highlighted in this paper, it suffices to conclude that mistrust is one of the problems bedeviling US-Iran relations.
Recommendations
The current relations between the US and the United Arab Emirates are mainly bilateral agreements with each part benefiting. However, the UAE can learn from the acrimonious relations that the US has had with Iran for over five decades. The fallout between the US and Iran hinges on the allegations of the latter abetting local and global terrorism. Therefore, the UAE should ensure that it does not have associations with terrorist-linked factions in the Middle East.
In addition, the two countries need to work together and speak in one voice on matters concerning the Persian Gulf. The conflict of interest that was seen in July 2017 concerning the Yemen crisis between the US and UAE should be handled with care. While the then US Secretary of State called for a ceasefire, the UAE appeared to encourage its partners to reject such appeals (Fahim & Ryan, 2017).
Such diverging views may lead to a crisis and lessons from the US-Iran relations, no party benefits during unhealthy confrontations that breed mistrust. In addition, the US esteems partners who value human rights. As such, the UAE can start by signing different international human and labor rights as a show of goodwill. The key takeaway lesson from the US-Iran relations is that relationships built on mistrust cannot achieve the desired objectives and there are no winners from such an unhealthy union. The UAE should always seek to settle amicably any emerging issues with its allies.
References
Fahim, K., & Ryan, M. (2017). The UAE’s hunt for its enemies is challenging its alliance with the United States. The Washington Post. Web.
Kinzer, S. (2010). Reset: Iran, Turkey and America’s future. New York, NY: St. Martin’s Griffin.
McCutcheon, C. (2016). US-Iran relations. CQ Researcher, 26(10), 217-240.
United States Department of State. (2016). Iran. Web.
Weiner, T. (2007). Legacy of ashes: The history of the CIA. New York, NY: Doubleday.
Wright, R. (2016). The Iran deal’s ‘Argo’ moments. The New Yorker. Web.