| ID | 131453 |
| Title Proper | Richard Nixon's road to Tehran |
| Other Title Information | the making of the U.S.-Iran arms agreement of May 1972 |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | McGlinchey, Stephen |
| Publication | 2013. |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | By the time of Richard Nixon's arrival in office Iran had already become America's single largest arms purchaser. This was the result of an evolutionary process that had been underway for two decades. Nixon did not just change that evolutionary pattern of arms sales with Iran, he completely revised U.S. thinking on Iran's regional role. By the end of his first term in office, Nixon had leveraged U.S. Middle Eastern regional policy primarily around the focal point of a militarily strong, pro-U.S. Iran. In concert, the shah was encouraged to begin an unprecedented military spending spree. Consequently, in mid-1972 following a meeting of the two leaders in Tehran, Iranian annual purchases went, virtually overnight, from being measured in the tens of millions to being measured in the multi-billions. Tracing the complex evolution toward that meeting, and the accompanying policy shifts, form an underappreciated part of Cold War history. |
| `In' analytical Note | Diplomatic History Vol.37, No.4; September 2013: p.841-860 |
| Journal Source | Diplomatic History Vol.37, No.4; September 2013: p.841-860 |
| Key Words | Middle East Policy - US ; Richard Nixon - Diplomat ; Regional Policy ; Defence Expenditure ; Cold War ; History ; Diplomacy ; Regional Power ; Diplomatic Policy ; Arms Policy ; Military Spending ; US - Iran Relations ; Arms Control ; Arms Deal ; Arms Race ; Evolutionary Process ; Regional Politics ; U.S.-Iran Arms Agreement ; Defence Purchase ; Defence Acquisition ; Policy Shifts ; Defence Economy ; Bilateral Relations |