REVOLUTIONARY IRAN AND THE UNITED STATES US Foreign Policy and Conflict in the Islamic World Series Editor Tom Lansford University of Southern Mississippi, USA The proliferation of an anti-US ideology among radicalized Islamic groups has emerged as one of the most significant security concerns for the United States and contemporary global relations in the wake of the end of the Cold War. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 demonstrated the danger posed by Islamic extremists to US domestic and foreign interests. Through a wealth of case studies this new series examines the role that US foreign policy has played in exacerbating or ameliorating hostilities among and within Muslim nations as a means of exploring the rise in tension between some Islamic groups and the West. The series provides an interdisciplinary framework of analysis which, transcending traditional, narrow modes of inquiry, permits a comprehensive examination of US foreign policy in the context of the Islamic world. Other titles in the series Great Powers and Regional Orders The United States and the Persian Gulf Edited by Markus Kaim ISBN 978-0-7546-7197-8 Fostering Fundamentalism Terrorism, Democracy and American Engagement in Central Asia Matthew Crosston ISBN 978-0-7546-4632-7 US Foreign Policy and the Horn of Africa Peter Woodward ISBN 978-0-7546-3580-2 US-Pakistan Relationship Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan A.Z. Hilali ISBN 978-0-7546-4220-6 Revolutionary Iran and the United States Low-intensity Conflict in the Persian Gulf JoSEPH J. ST. MARIE University of Southern Mississippi, USA SHAHdAd NAGHSHPoUR University of Southern Mississippi, USA © Joseph J. St. Marie and Shahdad Naghshpour 2011 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher. Joseph J. St. Marie and Shahdad Naghshpour have asserted their right under the Copyright, designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the authors of this work. Published by Ashgate Publishing Limited Ashgate Publishing Company Wey Court East Suite 420 Union Road 101 Cherry Street Farnham Burlington Surrey, GU9 7PT VT 05401-4405 England USA www.ashgate.com British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data St Marie, Joseph J. Revolutionary Iran and the United States : Low-intensity Conflict in the Persian Gulf. – (US Foreign Policy and Conflict in the Islamic World) 1. Iran – Foreign relations – United States. 2. United States – Foreign relations – Iran. 3. Iran – Foreign economic relations – United States. 4. United States – Foreign economic relations – Iran. 5. Iran – History – Revolution, 1979–Influence. 6. Low-intensity conflicts (Military science) – Persian Gulf Region– History. I. Title II. Series III. Naghshpour, Shahdad. 327.5’5073-dc22 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data St. Marie, Joseph J. Revolutionary Iran and the United States: Low-intensity Conflict in the Persian Gulf / by Joseph J. St. Marie and Shahdad Naghshpour. p. cm. – (US Foreign Policy and Conflict in the Islamic World) Includes index. 1. United States – Foreign relations – Iran. 2. Iran – Foreign relations – United States. 3. Low intensity conflicts (Military science) – Persian Gulf. I. Naghshpour, Shahdad. II. Title. JZ1480.A57I718 2011 327.73055–dc22 2010048958 ISBN 9780754676706 (hbk) ISBN 9781409427223 (ebk) V We dedicate this work to the memory of our parents: John H. & Josephine St. Marie Ali & Azam Naghshpour This page has been left blank intentionally Contents Acknowledgements ix 1 Low-Intensity Conflict and Fourth Generation Warfare 1 2 Early Contacts 29 3 End of Qajar and the beginning of Pahlavi dynasty (1914-1925) 59 4 The Beginning of American Influence 81 5 Economic Relations between the United States and Iran 113 6 The 1979 Revolution and the Beginning of the Conflict with the United States 141 7 Low-Level Military Confrontation in the Persian Gulf 165 8 The Future of the Relationship 183 Index 199 This page has been left blank intentionally Acknowledgements Great thanks go two of our graduate students Mr. Rian Plaswirth and Mr. Jim Kierulff who provided helpful assistance. This page has been left blank intentionally Chapter 1 Low-Intensity Conflict and Fourth Generation Warfare The relationship between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States is for all practical purposes a non-relationship with each nation pursuing adversarial and hostile policies and actions towards the other. The reality of the situation is that Iran and the United States are nations engaged in a low-intensity conflict. This work examines the low-intensity conflict between the United States and Iran, with respect to the military, economic, and political aspects in which the conflict has taken in the past thirty years. This chapter investigates the relationship between The Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States of America before and after the 1979 Iranian Islamic Revolution with particular emphasis on the post-revolutionary war stages. The analysis examines the adversarial relationship, fourth generation warfare (political, economic and diplomatic war in the 21st. Century), and the theoretical constructs that surround this form of warfare between states. Furthermore, this chapter sets the stage for subsequent chapters by demonstrating how domestic politics and low-intensity warfare are linked. This linkage, we argue, determines the ebb and flow of the conflict. The Adversarial Relationship The effective date of this conflict can be pinpointed as 4 November 1979, when Iranian radical students seized the US embassy in Tehran, taking US diplomats and civilian workers hostage for 444 days. This action, which was tacitly sanctioned by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, produced a long lasting and significant change in US foreign policy toward Iran (Jordet nd, Pollack 2004, Quosh 2007). The diplomatic crisis was highlighted by the failed American rescue attempt of the hostages, which put each nation firmly in a confrontational state. Subsequent confrontations were manifested through moral or ideological struggles between two opposing ideologies pursued by means other than direct military confrontation. Similar to Western political practice, the Islamic Republic has democratic institutions and constitutional checks and balances. However, these governmental characteristics are derived from Islamic law which is inherently undemocratic. For example, candidates for political office are required to submit their credentials to religious scholars before they are certified to stand for election (Abrahamian 2008, Thaler et al. 2010). The Constitution of the Islamic Republic is derived 2 Revolutionary Iran and the United States from Shia Islamic law, which in turn is derived from the Koran, the “infallible word of God.” The Islamic Republic has created a political system diametrically opposed to the American and Jeffersonian ideals of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” through the implementation of various social, economic, and political controls. The Iranian government sees the American constitution and political system as corrupt and devoid of the perquisite religious component, which they deem necessary for a just society. With such diverse ideological views there has been little common ground for compromise or co-existence. Those episodes of cooperation such as “Arms for Hostages” have tended to end badly. Even Iranian assistance in the defeat of the Taliban was short lived after Iran was made part of the “Axis of Evil” short of direct military conflict both have sought various means to demonstrate their ideological superiority within political and economic arenas. Levels of Analysis To begin, a meaningful comparison of Iranian and American interaction must examine the levels of analysis to determine how they relate to low-intensity conflict and fourth generation warfare. To be sure, it is generally accepted that individual, state, and systemic or global levels of analysis are proper domains of inquiry for the study of international relations and, more specifically, conflicts. The present analysis crosses various domains as an essential function of the nature of modern conflict. Since modern conflict is multi-dimensional our analysis will be multi-dimensional. The individual level of analysis is primarily concerned with the motivations, constraints, and incentives a decision maker works under. While there are incentives and constraints imposed upon all decision makers, the personal traits of a policy maker are appropriate for the study of low-intensity conflict and fourth generation warfare (Lind 2004). Given the overarching ideological or moral component of this new type of warfare, personal attributes become important when examining individual and collective motivations or preferences for certain policy actions. Looking at the state and its internal attributes to determine policy direction is another part of fourth generation warfare analysis. Clearly the alignment, relative power, and ideology of constituent groups within a state have a profound impact on the policies a state may pursue. The fragility of the ruling coalition, strength of the opposition as well as economic and military threats all impact decisions made by elites within the state. Including the state level of analysis in our conflict model is appropriate as specific tactics and strategies are constrained by domestic factors as well as personal and systemic