There had been the American Revolution in 1776; the French Revolution in 1789; and the Soviet Communist Revolution in 1917. Cuba had its Revolution in 1959 and took over foreign-owned assets. America has never forgotten and still behaves towards Cuba in a totally vindictive manner. It’s the same with Iran which also took over foreign-owned assets. However, there was now another Revolution — the Iranian one — and if you want to understand its significance, you need only remember one thing — the poison gas supplied to Saddam Hussein by the West.
The world thought that there was only a choice between Western capitalism and Soviet communism. Suddenly, in 1979, something new appeared and it opened up the possibility of a third choice. The world was shocked — how was such a thing possible? Worse (from the point of view of capitalists and communists), a country was genuinely asserting its independence.
The West hated the sudden independence of Iran; they hated the manifestation of a society’s culture and religion; above all, they hated the loss of their economic control. In 1953 — let it never be forgotten — Iran under M. Mossadeq had only wanted a fairer share of the oil revenues but the American and the British secret services overthrew Mossadeq and kept their economic control through the cruel rule of the Shah and his vicious secret police. Above all, Iran stands firm in respect of Al Quds.
The first characteristic of the Islamic Revolution of Iran was a sense of relationship to Allah or God. Such a thing does not exist in the West. Secondly, Imam Khomeini called for unity between Shia and Sunni Islam. Thirdly, instead of referring back to the past or dreaming of the future, Imam Khomeini strengthened the Shia concept of Bada which says action should be taken in the present. Fourthly, Iran manifested national and cultural independence. Fifthly, the Imam called for the exportation of Justice. This does not mean a violent takeover of other countries. It means the export of new concepts of justice, particularly economic justice and, in that respect; Imam Khomeini condemned existing Islamic practice and asked that politicians and academics search for something new.
The biggest impact of the Islamic Revolution of Iran had on West Asia and the Islamic World is a democratic one which terrifies the medieval, autocratic, barbaric regimes of West Asia AND America and its allies whose basic policy is to suppress democratic movements by supporting the medieval, autocratic regimes. The various annual democratic demonstrations in Iran are the biggest in the world and have to be seen to be believed.
The Americans, the British and the Israelis organize assassinations be they of Iranian scientists or General Qassim Soleimani. They support killer organizations like the MKO — over 14,000 Iranians have died as a result of the MKO. They lie and smear and, above all, they break agreements, refuse to pay sums of money which are due, and impose sanctions causing billions of dollars of damage and the deaths of many thousands. Yet Iran still stands firm, strong and proud. In particular, Iran is symbolic of a new multi-polar world rather than the old, outdated unipolar one.
I characterize the Islamic Revolution of Iran nowadays as the one country (and the only country) in a position to give a big lead to a world now desperately in need of a big lead. It is the only country with the necessary combination of political, religious and cultural independence. It is the only country that knows that the Western system is profoundly wrong and, in various ways, is on the cusp of collapse.
Moreover, Iran is a country centered on the Shia Faith which, at its heart, has a profound sense of the need to fight anew for justice in a world without justice. If Iran does not give the lead, nobody else will.