Iran: A Short Political Guide

Iran: A Short Political Guide

Throughout its two thousand-year history, Iran has kept its cultural identity intact and eluded foreign domination. Now an uneasy neighbor of the Soviet Union and one of the richest oil-producing countries in the world, it occupies a position of great strategic importance to both East and West. Threatened internally by ideological divisions among the intelligentsia, the aftermath of uncontrolled inflation, and the great gap between rich and poor, Iran is extremely vulnerable to the external pressures of the competing ColdWar giants. This clear, concise, and objective study of the complexities of the Iranian political scene, written by the author of ARAB NATIONALISM AND BRITISH IMPERIALISM and THE PERSIAN GULF IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY is prefaced by both an able description of the country and a brilliant short discussion of its history. This book should prove invaluable to all those who wish to understand this Western stronghold in the Middle East.