American and British Soft Power in Iran, 1953-1960

Book excerpt: This book offers a distinctive approach to understanding Anglo-American relations with Iran in the early Cold War. It establishes how the United Kingdom and United States used soft power between 1953 and 1960 to combat communism and promote their respective ways of life in Iran. It identifies their motives, the types of initiatives employed, and the extent to which they perceived their policies to be a success. It is a historical case study through which wider conclusions regarding UK and US foreign policy can be drawn. As well as illustrating the competitive tensions within the Anglo-American 'special relationship', it highlights the role of individuals in the making and shaping of diplomatic endeavours. More broadly, the analysis of UK and US interactions in Iran through the prism of soft power underlines that there was more to both countries’ Cold War foreign policies than the containment of communism.