Few modern rivalries have been as enduring as the one between Iran and the United States, along with its Western allies. Its roots stretch back to 1953, when Iran’s fragile experiment with parliamentary democracy collided with Cold War geopolitics and oil politics, setting in motion a cycle of mistrust that still shapes headlines today.
In the early 1950s, Iran’s democratically elected prime minister, Mohammad Mosaddegh, moved to nationalize the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, arguing that Iran should control and profit from its own vast petroleum resources. The move electrified the Iranian public but alarmed both the United Kingdom and the United States, who feared not only the loss of oil interests but also the possibility that instability could open the door to Soviet influence.
In 1953, British intelligence and the American Central Intelligence Agency orchestrated Operation Ajax, a covert effort that fueled protests and political maneuvering culminating in a coup. Mosaddegh was deposed, and power was consolidated under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. The Shah styled himself as a modernizer, launching reforms that expanded education and women’s rights. Yet his secret police, SAVAK, became synonymous with repression, torture, and the silencing of dissent. Oil revenues flowed, Western ties deepened, and American influence became ever more visible. For many Iranians, the Shah came to symbolize foreign-backed authoritarianism.
By 1979, public anger erupted into revolution. A broad coalition of religious leaders, secular intellectuals, workers, and students, overthrew the monarchy. The revolution ultimately elevated Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who established an Islamic Republic rooted in Shiite clerical authority. The U.S. embassy hostage crisis later that year cemented a new era of hostility.
Since then, sanctions have been a central instrument of Western policy toward Iran. Beginning with asset freezes in 1979 and expanding dramatically over decades, particularly around Iran’s nuclear program. Sanctions have targeted banks, oil exports, shipping, and individuals. Supporters argue they aim to curb nuclear proliferation and regional militancy. Critics counter that sanctions have inflicted severe hardship on ordinary Iranians, shrinking the economy, driving inflation, and limiting access to medicine and global markets.
In 1988, the U.S. Navy shot down Iran Air Flight 655 during the American sponsored Iraq-Iran War, killing 290 civilians, including 66 children, an event Washington called a tragic mistake and Tehran regards as emblematic of American hostility. In 2020, the United States killed Iranian General, Qasem Soleimani, in a drone strike in Iraq, dramatically escalating tensions. In recent U.S – Israeli strikes, Iranian supreme leader or “Ayatollah”, together with some of his relatives, including a 14 months old innocent baby were killed.
Iran, for its part, has retaliated both directly and indirectly. It has backed armed groups across the Middle East, from Lebanon to Iraq and Yemen, that have targeted U.S. forces and allies. Missile and drone attacks have struck American bases in Iraq. Cyber operations attributed to Iran have targeted Western infrastructure and corporations. Tehran has also supported regional actors in conflicts involving Israel, further widening the confrontation. Each incident reinforces hardened narratives: in Washington, of a destabilizing regime; in Tehran, of foreign interference and aggression.
More than seven decades after 1953, the shadow of the coup lingers in Iranian political consciousness. For many Iranians, it stands as proof that Western powers subverted their democracy for strategic and economic gain. For many Americans, Iran’s revolutionary ideology and regional interventions represent an enduring threat to stability. Until both nations find a way to reconcile historical grievances with present realities, the events set in motion in 1953 will continue to echo long after the oil that first fueled the conflict has run dry.
– Ambassador Ezewele Cyril Abionanojie is the author of the book ‘The Enemy Called Corruption’ an award winner of Best Columnist of the year 2020, Giant in Security Support, Statesmanship Integrity & Productivity Award Among others. He is the President of Peace Ambassador Global.