Pahlavi Iran's Relations with Africa

The first comprehensive study of Iran's political and cultural interactions with Africa during the Cold War and decolonisation.

Examining Iran's political, cultural and economic interactions with Africa during the late Pahlavi period, this innovative book is intended for students and researchers of modern Iran and its foreign relations, as well as area studies scholars who specialise in Africa and the Middle East.This book presents the first comprehensive study of Iran's complex relationship with Africa during the late Pahlavi era. While many studies of Iran's foreign relations during the Cold War present Iranian policy as fully aligned with the United States, Robert Steele reveals Iran as an independent actor capable of forging its own path, and shows that Africa was central to Iran's economic policy and security strategy during the reign of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Africa was where the shah sought allies to balance the radicalism of Nasser, often through Iranian aid, customers for Iranian oil and potential sources of uranium. Bolstered by the British withdrawal from the Persian Gulf in 1971 and the oil price hike of 1973, Steele also shows how the shah saw an opportunity for his Iran to play a leading role in the Indian Ocean, revealing the central place of Africa in Iran's global strategy.