All the Shah′s Men: An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror

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Albright's statement didn't seem to make big news at the time. Indeed, most of the information in Stephen Kinzer's All The Shah's Men: An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror is as unknown as it at first glance seems unlikely. But many of the events are public. The others Kinzer documents from biographies, journals, memoirs, newspapers, and official CIA service history. It all seems truthful enough. But other things than Americans overthrowing democratically elected Iranian leaders seem to make the news, such as Iranians holding Americans hostage almost 25 years later. Stephen Kinzer, a NYT journalist and specialist in US plots to overthrow foreign governments published this book in 2003. He begins with a whirlwind tour of Iranian history from Cyrus the Great in 550 BC to Alexander the Great in 334 BC and Parthians to Sasanians. Zoroastrianism taught leaders gained legitimacy by just rule. Following the Arab conquest of 633 AD Islam was divided into Sunni and Shia branches. Shia believed that the Sunni caliphate had been corrupted. Throughout the crisis, the British obstinately refused to see that world opinion was moving away from support for the colonial system, and consistently misjudged Iranian passion on this topic. Numerous opportunities for compromise presented themselves to the British, each of which they haughtily rejected.

But again, this is a fabulous read, that I would recommend to anyone who is curious about this fascinating period of history.

Political instability arrived with the 20th century as the populace began agitating for a constitution, the nascent seeds of democracy. Three distinct segments within Iran wrestled for power: the Qajar ruling clan, the Constitutional reformers, and the Islamic clerics. Simultaneously, Britain and the Russian Empire tussled to maintain their economic interests in Iran and in 1907, they accordingly signed a treaty, notably without any input from Iran. As Russia became engulfed by its own civil war and revolution, Britain took decisive steps which resulted in its effective sovereignty over Iran. In the 1920s, Reza, an uneducated but ambitious military leader, toppled the Qajar dynasty and ruled until 1941. His successor was his son, Mohammad Reza Shah. Neither dislodged British business interests nor its military presence. a new book about the coup All the Shah′s men...recalls some unwelcome parallels(with the Gulf War)..."( The Guardian, 20 August 2003) His critical stance towards U.S. foreign policy throughout the past decades shows that he sees the hand of the United States in almost any development throughout the world and this book is not an exception. While it might have a certain charm for some that Kinzer takes an almost activist-like stance against U.S policies, it does no good for objective historical writing. His recent remarks about the Russian invasion of Ukraine and blaming it on NATO expansion further reveals his penchant for isolating the effects of U.S. policies and criticizing them out of context.) In August 1953 the CIA with the help of some influential figures in Iran orchestrated a coup against Mossadegh. They encouraged and organized the mass protests against Mossadegh that resulted in chaos in the capital city of Tehran. i143243688 |b1080006496429 |dculnb |g- |m |h1 |x1 |t0 |i0 |j18 |k220701 |n02-13-2023 19:17 |o- |aDS318 |r.K49 2008

Mossadegh's Iran faced formidable foes: British oil executives, the C.I.A. and the brothers Dulles, all of whom come off wretchedly here. The least sympathetic of all are Iran's erstwhile British rulers, who continued to gouge Iran via the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. When the Truman administration prodded it to share the wealth with Iran, its chairman sniffed, ''One penny more and the company goes broke.'' In 1951, to London's fury, Mossadegh led a successful campaign to nationalize the oil company, drove the British to close their vital oil refinery at Abadan and became prime minister. The British began drafting invasion plans, but Truman and Secretary of State Dean Acheson warned them that gunboat diplomacy would hurt the West in its struggle with Moscow. All the Shah's Men is an entertaining and educating read. It sheds light on one of the most important U.S. actions in the Middle East of the 20th century. It is also a book with relevance to today. It is said that those who ignore history are condemned to repeat it. This book should be read thoughtfully by anyone concerned about where the current U.S. administration's policies might lead.After Mosaddeq nationalized the oil and the oil company, things came to a head. The British government didn’t want a deal without retaining (de facto if not de jure) control of the oil company and even though their position softened a bit overtime, their persistence was more than matched by that of Mosaddeq’s. Kinzer doesn’t criticize Mosaddeq openly but from early-on, he devotes paragraphs on his peculiar character that made him a great orator and a firebrand opposition leader but not a great statesman: “...[A] visionary rather than a pragmatist, preferring defeat in an honorable cause to what he considered shameful compromise.” This is actually a point of contention between historians: some believe that Mosaddeq made numerous mistakes in failing to make a compromise; others holding that the offers made by AIOC and the British government were not made in good faith and were not real attempts at a workable compromise. Kinzer doesn’t dwell on this and he settles for giving a broad summary of the proposals and then moves ahead. If you like Robert Ludlum or John Le Carre, you'll delight in Kinzer's account of the return of the Shah to Iran. It's written and performed like a spy novel, with code names, secret meetings, and last-minute plot twists. Kinzer's a long-time, highly experienced New York Times foreign correspondent, so he's deft at crafting hard facts into compelling narrative.