How the West Engineered the Shah’s Fall: Oil, Power & the Betrayal of Iran
Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi was once the West’s golden ally—a modernizer and a bulwark against communism. Yet, by the late 1970s, that relationship collapsed, with the West abandoning him at the moment of greatest need.
Why? A mix of oil politics, economic tensions, geopolitical shifts, and Western hypocrisy. 🧵👇
Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi was once the West’s golden ally—a modernizer and a bulwark against communism. Yet, by the late 1970s, that relationship collapsed, with the West abandoning him at the moment of greatest need.
Why? A mix of oil politics, economic tensions, geopolitical shifts, and Western hypocrisy. 🧵👇
1️⃣ The Shah’s Oil Gamble & Western Backlash
🔹 In 1973, the Shah took full control of Iran’s oil industry, ending the 1954 consortium agreement that let Western companies profit off Iranian crude.
🔹 He then led OPEC to raise oil prices from $5.11 to $11.65 per barrel, triggering a 470% increase within a year.
🔹 His message to the West? “The era of cheap oil is over.”
🔹 Iran’s oil revenue quadrupled to $20.9 billion in 1974, fueling modernization. But in the West, it triggered economic chaos:
✅ U.S. oil imports surged from $3.9B to $24B in a year
✅ France’s unemployment rose from 2% to 6%
✅ Spain’s $500M trade surplus flipped into a $3.1B deficit
The Shah believed in Iran’s right to wealth, but Western leaders saw him as a problem.
🔹 In 1973, the Shah took full control of Iran’s oil industry, ending the 1954 consortium agreement that let Western companies profit off Iranian crude.
🔹 He then led OPEC to raise oil prices from $5.11 to $11.65 per barrel, triggering a 470% increase within a year.
🔹 His message to the West? “The era of cheap oil is over.”
🔹 Iran’s oil revenue quadrupled to $20.9 billion in 1974, fueling modernization. But in the West, it triggered economic chaos:
✅ U.S. oil imports surged from $3.9B to $24B in a year
✅ France’s unemployment rose from 2% to 6%
✅ Spain’s $500M trade surplus flipped into a $3.1B deficit
The Shah believed in Iran’s right to wealth, but Western leaders saw him as a problem.
2️⃣ The Shah’s Vision & Western Fear
🔹 The Shah didn’t just demand fair oil prices—he wanted the West to rethink energy consumption and invest in nuclear & solar power.
🔹 He openly criticized the West’s exploitative economics, stating:
🗣️ “You buy our crude oil and sell it back to us as refined petrochemicals at 100x the price.”
🔹 The West feared this “energy nationalism” would spread to other oil-producing countries.
🔹 His ambition? A post-oil future where Iran became an industrial powerhouse.
This was too much independence for the global order to handle.
🔹 The Shah didn’t just demand fair oil prices—he wanted the West to rethink energy consumption and invest in nuclear & solar power.
🔹 He openly criticized the West’s exploitative economics, stating:
🗣️ “You buy our crude oil and sell it back to us as refined petrochemicals at 100x the price.”
🔹 The West feared this “energy nationalism” would spread to other oil-producing countries.
🔹 His ambition? A post-oil future where Iran became an industrial powerhouse.
This was too much independence for the global order to handle.
3️⃣ The Carter Administration’s Pressure
🔹 Nixon supported the Shah’s military buildup, but Carter weaponized “human rights” to undermine him.
🔹 The Pentagon made Iran pay for its own military R&D, hiking costs.
🔹 As inflation hit the U.S. due to oil prices, Carter needed a scapegoat—and the Shah was it.
🔹 Instead of backing him against growing unrest, the U.S. cut support, emboldening his enemies.
🔹 Nixon supported the Shah’s military buildup, but Carter weaponized “human rights” to undermine him.
🔹 The Pentagon made Iran pay for its own military R&D, hiking costs.
🔹 As inflation hit the U.S. due to oil prices, Carter needed a scapegoat—and the Shah was it.
🔹 Instead of backing him against growing unrest, the U.S. cut support, emboldening his enemies.
4️⃣ Western Media & the Weaponization of “Human Rights”
🔹 The Shah’s modernization & secularization alienated:
✅ The clergy (who lost their power)
✅ Feudal landlords (who lost land in reforms)
✅ Leftists (who hated capitalism)
🔹 SAVAK’s suppression of dissidents was exaggerated & politicized by Amnesty International & Western media.
🔹 Meanwhile, Khomeini’s radicalism was whitewashed—he was sold as a spiritual leader, not a theocrat-in-waiting.
🔹 The Shah’s modernization & secularization alienated:
✅ The clergy (who lost their power)
✅ Feudal landlords (who lost land in reforms)
✅ Leftists (who hated capitalism)
🔹 SAVAK’s suppression of dissidents was exaggerated & politicized by Amnesty International & Western media.
🔹 Meanwhile, Khomeini’s radicalism was whitewashed—he was sold as a spiritual leader, not a theocrat-in-waiting.
5️⃣ The Final Betrayal: 1978–79 Revolution
🔹 As protests erupted, the Shah hesitated—hoping the U.S. would help.
🔹 Carter’s response? Withholding support & pressuring the military to abandon him.
🔹 The U.S. & U.K. facilitated Khomeini’s return—knowing full well he would destroy Iran’s secular future.
🔹 When Khomeini took power, he dismantled everything the Shah built—but by then, the West had already moved on.
🔹 As protests erupted, the Shah hesitated—hoping the U.S. would help.
🔹 Carter’s response? Withholding support & pressuring the military to abandon him.
🔹 The U.S. & U.K. facilitated Khomeini’s return—knowing full well he would destroy Iran’s secular future.
🔹 When Khomeini took power, he dismantled everything the Shah built—but by then, the West had already moved on.
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