Wednesday, August 9th., 2017
Newly Declassified Memos Reveal Britain Pushed US to Organize 1953 Iran Coup
The
British role in the 1953 coup d'etat in Iran has long been largely
neglected, especially due to the fact that London tried its best to
sweep the story under the rug. However, newly released State Department
documents reveal how the UK manipulated the US into toppling
democratically elected Iranian Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh.
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AP Photo/ Carolyn Kaster
While it has long been public knowledge that American and British intelligence agencies had had a hand in the Mosaddegh ouster on August 19, 1953, the CIA officially confirmed its role in the controversial operation only 60 years later, in August 2013.
In June 2017, the State Department released a 1,007-page report consisting of declassified letters and diplomatic cables from the years leading up to the coup as part of its Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS) series.
For its part, the UK has long appeared to be highly reluctant to shed any light on its role in the planning and executing the 1953 regime change operation. The National Security Archive's preamble to the newly released documents on the matter cites London's apparent requests to Washington not to expose Great Britain's role in the coup.
"It is not clear whether British officials were
ultimately consulted about the release of these particular documents
in 2017," the preamble remarked.
Still, two memoranda dated November 26 and December 3, 1952, leave no
doubts about the UK's specific interest in toppling Mosaddegh. Both top
secret memos were entitled eloquently: "British Proposal to Organize a
Coup d'etat in Iran."
"The British Foreign Office has informed us
that it would be disposed to attempt to bring about a coup d'etat
in Iran, replacing the Mosadeq Government [spelling used
in original material] by one which would be more 'reliable,' if the
American Government agreed to cooperate," Assistant Secretary of State
Henry Byroade wrote to his superior, Deputy Under Secretary of State H. Freeman Matthews, in November 1952.
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AFP 2017/ STRINGER / INTERCONTINENTALE
Picture
released On October 1951 of Iranian Prime minister Mohammed Mossadegh
sitting on a wheelchair, in an hospital of New York.
As RIA Novosti contributor Vladimir Ardayev noted, in the 20th century Middle Eastern crude remained a major factor determining the US and UK policy in the region with American and British oil corporations maintaining control over the Mideast hydrocarbon reserves.
However, in the middle of the 20th century, the Gulf kingdoms imposed pressure on Western oil giants demanding a larger share of revenues. While the US firms agreed to meet Saudi Arabia demands in the 1950s, the UK adamantly refused to follow this example while cooperating with Iran. In response, Prime Minister Mosaddegh nationalized Iran's oil industry in early 1951, dealing a heavy blow to Great Britain's interests.
Still, the memoranda indicated that the British tried to convince the US, which was reluctant to throw its weight behind the controversial operation that their goal was to prevent the Communists from taking power in Iran.
The British government insisted that "a coup d'etat… is probably our best chance to save Iran."
"While the [British] Embassy representative
(Bernard Burrows) did not give details of the British reasoning, it
appears that the Foreign Office has come to this conclusion because (a)
British intelligence reported that an organization which could handle
the job exists in Iran, and (b) the Foreign Office sees virtually no
prospect of an oil settlement with Mosadeq and has little hope that his
Government will be able to prevent a Communist takeover," Byroade wrote.
©
AP Photo/
The Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, gestures during a press
conference at the Trianon in Versailles, near Paris, France on June 27,
1974.
"The British view was that Mosadeq was very
unlikely to do anything effective against the Communists," the memo
read, adding that although London admitted that the regime change
operation "had elements of uncertainty and danger" it might be "less
dangerous than continued reliance upon the Mosadeq government as a
barrier against Communism."
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AP Photo/ Kevin Lamarque/Pool Photo
"One element which must be taken into consideration in making our decision is that we are presently thinking of unilateral action to assist the Mosadeq Government in the event that the British do not agree to an oil settlement acceptable to Mosadeq," he wrote.
"It would be virtually impossible to proceed
with plans to overthrow Dr. Mosadeq while at the same time giving him
open assistance," the assistant secretary of state highlighted.
Byroade warned that by adopting the British plan Washington would
jeopardize the American efforts "to formulate a new oil settlement
proposal which might be acceptable to the Iranians and the British."
"Even if it [the coup d'etat] were successful,
the proposed coup might in the long run work to our disadvantage not
only in Iran but in other parts of the world, especially the Near East,"
the American diplomat foresaw.
Byroade's warning turned out to be prophetic.Ardayev pointed out that although the major goals of the coup organizers were achieved, the situation led to a series of undesirable events.
"After toppling Mosaddegh and defeating the Communists, the organizers of the coup also suppressed other liberal forces in the country," the journalist highlighted. "As the clergy gained more and more power in Iran, the anti-Western sentiment began to grow."
"In 1979, it resulted in the Islamic
revolution, the seizure of the US embassy, and the suspension
of diplomatic relations between Iran and the United States," Ardayev
recalled.
The question remains open as to how the British managed to convince
the US to carry out the regime change operation that contradicted
America's national interests.