For many decades U.S. presidents, foreign policy elites, pundit talking heads, mainstream news media and most politicians of both major parties have accused Iran of being “a threat” to the Middle East and world peace. But is this true? In reality who is “threatening” whom in this region?

Hypocrisy is not a good basis for foreign policy. The historical record does not support this bipartisan, militaristic “group think” about Iran. The United States has too often been “part of the problem rather than part of the solution” in the Middle East as in other areas of conflict around the world. 

As Martin Luther King said about the use of military violence of Vietnam, “I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today: my own government.”

The historic evidence for being the “greatest purveyor of violence” toward Iran begins in 1953 with the U.S.- and British-orchestrated coup to remove the democratically elected Prime Minister and restore an autocratic king. 

The Shah (or king) modernized Iran but also built a strong, U.S supplied military and a repressive secret police force. He was anti-communist and friendly to Western oil interests so he had strong U.S. support. 

The Shaw was overthrown in 1979 by an Islamic cleric-led revolution. This included Iranian students seizing the American Embassy and holding 52 American diplomats hostage for 444 days in response to the U.S. granting asylum to the deposed Shah. 

Since 1980 the U.S and Iran have had no direct diplomatic relations.

Beginning with President Carter, The U.S has imposed 46 years of various economic, trade, scientific and military sanctions on Iran. Recently the Trump administration imposed “maximum economic and political pressure on the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran.” Sanctions are a form of warfare and often have severe impacts on the people of targeted countries.

Between 1980 and 1988 The U.S. supported Saddam Hussein in his war with Iran. The U.S invasions of Iraq in 1991 and 2003 were also examples of U.S aggression threatening peace in the region.

The U.S. unlimited military, economic and diplomatic support for Israel is another reason for conflict with Iran. Iran has supported the Palestinians and other groups opposed to Israel. These groups are considered “terrorist organizations” by the U.S. 

But through the years the U.S has supported many repressive dictators and right wing groups that practiced terrorist tactics. We have a double standard on terrorism.

On Jan. 3, 2020, the U.S. assassinated Iranian General Qasem Soleimani with a drone strike ordered by President Donald Trump. This was an act of terrorism.

The U.S. unconditional support for Israel’s wars with its Arab and Islamic neighbors is more evidence U.S. belligerence in the region. 

The nation of Israel was founded on terrorist tactics and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians. The U.S. has been complicit in the blockade of Gaza since 1967 and Israel’s imposing apartheid and recently a campaign of genocide on the Palestinian people.

Israel has recently attacked Iran several times with tacit U.S. support. The current war between Israel and Iran was started by Israel on June 13th with an unprovoked attack on Iran’s military defenses and nuclear facilities.

The most obvious evidence of the U.S. threatening posture toward Iran is the disparity in military assets in the region and the global reach of U.S. forces. The U.S. has multiple military bases, several aircraft carrier battle groups, 30,000 troops and hundreds of ground-based aircraft in the Persian Gulf area. 

Iran has no military bases, ships, aircraft or military forces on the U.S. border. Neither does Iran have the military capacity to directly attack the U.S. mainland.

The U.S. just demonstrated its global capacity by flying seven B-2 stealth bombers from Missouri to Iran, refueling in air several times during the 18-hour flight before rendezvousing with support aircraft in the Middle East to attack Iran. No other nation has this globe spanning military capability.

Clearly the U.S. with its declared military goal of “full spectrum dominance” and its long history of starting wars and engaging in military interventions or covert actions against numerous other nations, is the real threat to peace in the world. Iran – like Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan,  Libya, Yemen, Cuba or Venezuela (to name a few) – has zero capacity to seriously threaten the United States.

The goal of U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran was to destroy Iran’s nuclear weapons program. This allegedly required a defensive “preemptive” military attack (a bogus concept invented by the U.S. to justify its aggressive militarism). But this is simply another lie to justify military action. 

The facts are in 2015 the European Union (with support of the Obama administration) negotiated an agreement to limit and control Iran’s “nuclear ambitions.” In 2018, the Trump administration pulled out of this agreement primarily for domestic political reasons. Trump scuttled a peaceful solution widely recognized as an effective deterrent to Iran developing nuclear weapons.

Now Trump claims bombing Iran’s nuclear facilities will bring the recalcitrant Iranians to the bargaining table to end their nuclear program. This is more lies and political spin. 

To begin with the CIA and other allied secret services (including the Israeli Mossad) say Iran was not working on a nuclear bomb. Even if they were, bombing Iran’s underground nuclear laboratories and uranium enrichment facilities will not not stop Iran’s alleged program. It will increase their desire to have nuclear weapons. 

Diplomacy and reducing regional tensions (to reduce Iran’s fears of being attacked) are the best strategy for eliminating Iran’s “nuclear ambitions.”

Trump claims the U.S attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities was, “...a spectacular military success.” Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities “have been completely and totally obliterated...”  

Again, he is lying. U.S. intelligence reports, including aerial photographs, indicate the damage was much less significant. Nuclear experts say the a more realistic assessment is that Iran’s program was set back 3 to 6 months. 

The U.S. and Iran have significantly different world views. But there is no need for open animosity and conflict. 

Once again, the U.S is choosing war rather than diplomacy. History shows we can live peacefully with former enemies. Vietnam is an example. Peaceful coexistence is possible if we would choose to use international cooperation and respect for international law, rather than military force, to guide our foreign policy.