The Role of the US in Fall of the Shah and Rise of Khomeini to power

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The Role of the US in Fall of the Shah and Rise of Khomeini to power
The revolution that took place in Iran was purely as a result of politics (not guerrillas or military rebellion) that was largely influenced by the United States of America. This is according to a plausible theory fronted by (Fattahi) on what transpired in the last days of Shah in Iran. In this case, the US helped topple the Iranian monarchy headed by the last Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. He had enjoyed relative American protection and cooperation throughout his leadership but the US abandoned him to protect its interest in his last days. According to (Fattahi), the US facilitated the return of Khomeini in Iran in February 1979 and in his own interpretation of the recently declassified documents related to the last days of the Shah, it is evident that the US helped the fall of Shah and the rise of Khomeini. The primary thesis of this article supports Fattahi’s argument that the US facilitated the fall of Shah and rise of Khomeini through smoothening his return to Iran, urging Shah to step aside and confusion and lack of clear strategy by American diplomats on the crisis in Iran.
In the last days of Shah, America was forced to befriend an Iranian leader whom they hoped would advance their interests in Iran. According to (Fattahi), Washington protected its interest in the last day of Shah by trying to establish a connection with Khomeini who at the time was in exile. The mere action of attempting to contact Khomeini or conversing with him as the crisis in Iran worsened for Shah was a clear indication to Khomeini that the US was helpless and it ‘needed’ him. They established a contact with him through Khomeini’s supporter, Ebrahim Yazdi through Warren Zimmerman who tried to court Khomeini when Carter’s administration acknowledged the likelihood of the fall of Shah. Khomeini was exiled for his radical ideas based on Islamic fundamentalism and opposing of Shah’s ideologiesCITATION Ham07 \p 128 \l 1033 (Sedghi 128). Previously, Khomeini had established contact with America during Kennedy’s administration and claimed he was not opposed to American interests in Iran. When Zimmerman tried to establish contact after many years in exile and just about the time the situation in Terhan was worsening, was a clear indication to Khomeini that the US was out of options and if he played his cards right he could become the ruler of Iran. Contacting Khomeini rather than finding the best approach to defuse the problem in the country showed a clear lack of strategy to ensure the survival of the monarchy. The likely interpretation of that contact by Khomeini was that the monarchy was failing and this could have prompted Khomeini to perfect his strategy to return and take over the government.
The Americans, hoping to have a soft landing during the last days of Shah’s leadership, courted Khomeini to protect their interests. The very act of courting Khomeini was a clear indication that Carter’s administration was jumping ships and abandoning Shah. However, Carter’s administration failed to misread Ruhollah’s intentions and facilitated his return to Iran. He went on to take ho...