US Strategy on Iran Mirroring Policies that Led to 1953 Coup: Larijani

The Iranian Parliament speaker has censured western powers for following a hypocritical policy against Tehran, saying their behaviour towards Iran shares similarities with their policies before the 1953 coup which toppled a democratically-elected government in Iran.

Ali Larijani made the statement in an open parliamentary session on Sunday, referring to a US-UK orchestrated putsch against the government of Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddeq.

The coup restored to power the despotic former Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was ousted 26 years later by the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Larijani said the main motive of western governments for staging the coup was keeping huge oil profits flowing, but they pretended it was about preventing the soviet infiltration in Iran.

“The UK was controlling many oil-rich countries and it feared Iran’s model could spread to other countries, putting an end to their exploit. So they tried to stop the movement in Iran,” he said.

Larijani said the US and other western powers are following the same imperialist policies today, imposing sanctions to curb Iran’s defensive might and its regional power, while pretending they are working to promote freedom, human rights and global security.

“How dare you talk about the freedom of the Iranian nation with such a dark record in [orchestrating] the 1953 coup and creating a dependent dictatorship?” Fars News Agency quoted Larijani as saying.

Back in early May, US President Donald Trump withdrew Washington from the 2015 nuclear pact with Iran reached by his predecessor Barack Obama and other world powers, and ordered tough US sanctions on Tehran.

Earlier this month, the US re-imposed sanctions on Iran’s automotive and metal sectors, gold trade, aviation industry and other fields to exert “maximum economic pressure”.

The US is also working to push the world to cut trade with Iran and stop purchasing the country’s oil before November, when further sanctions on oil and transactions with the central bank of Iran will be restored.

This is while high-ranking US officials, including National Security Advisor John Bolton and State Secretary Mike Pompeo, have openly talked about the need for regime change in Iran, so that they can “set free” the Iranian nation.

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