Unlike the conflict between competing imperialist blocs that broke out over control of Iraq and the strategic oil and mineral platform it sits on, there are no disputes among the main imperialist powers on Washington’s moves toward an attack on Iran. The results of the Évian G-8 summit provide ample proof that Berlin, Paris, Tokyo and other imperialist powers support the U.S. rulers’ position that Tehran is building nuclear weapons, that it has acquired delivery systems from north Korea and Russia, and that it must be stopped by all means.

At the summit, U.S. president George Bush also obtained agreement for condemning north Korea for its nuclear weapons program. But for now, Washington and Tokyo are holding off from planning a military assault on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. They have no simple solutions in that region. Washington has decided to begin testing new ground-penetrating nuclear weapons for possible strikes against north Korea’s deep underground bunkers. It is also repositioning its troops in the Korean peninsula south of the “demilitarized zone,” that is, away from easy targeting by north Korean artillery.

Washington is seeking to prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons before it gets close to that point, leaving the Iranian regime at a strategic disadvantage and vulnerable to the nuclear powers surrounding it.

A U.S. military assault on Iran’s nuclear facilities—not an invasion—is the most likely turn of events as the White House pursues another target on its “axis of evil.”

Since the 1979 insurrection that toppled the U.S.-backed Shah of Iran—whose dictatorial regime had been a pro-imperialist bulwark in the Mideast and southwest Asia—Washington has set on a course of overthrowing the government dominated by the ayatollahs. The Islamic clerics usurped the leadership of the revolutionary movement of Iranian working people because of previous betrayals of the working class and its allies by Stalinism. The capitalist government that came to power, while it has come into conflict with U.S. imperialism, has eroded most of the gains of the 1979 revolution. Today, with Iran far removed from the momentum of that popular uprising, the regime has continued to evolve in a reactionary direction. Washington, however, still considers this government a thorn on its side that it intends to remove.

Some among U.S. ruling circles have argued for fostering an uprising inside Iran. But most in Washington don’t believe that’s in the cards. The U.S. rulers’ goal is not to return the shah, which is politically ruled out, but to help bring about a regime, even if it is bourgeois nationalist, that will work with Washington to safeguard, instead of hindering, imperialism’s interests in the region. Toward that end, the U.S. government is using many means, including the “nuclear nonproliferation” club and cultivating a relationship with the People’s Mujahedeen, an antigovernment Iranian guerrilla group that is based in Iraq, had cozy relations with the Saddam Hussein regime, and was on Washington’s list of “terrorist” organizations until April.

At the same time, the U.S. rulers are pressuring Tehran to help police the region on behalf of imperialist interests under the banner of “fighting terrorism.” Their real target today is not Al Qaeda but the Lebanon-based Hezbollah, which is backed by Tehran.

The White House has no illusions it can turn the current Iranian regime into a reliable Mideastern gendarme like the shah was. But they sense weakness because of Tehran’s continuing concessions and its apparent state of denial, and thus unpreparedness, that it faces a U.S. attack.

The only thing the imperialist rulers respect is determined resistance and strength. History shows that if you give imperialism the tip of your finger, it will take your hand. That is what Washington is doing now.

In these objectives—destroying Tehran’s nuclear weapons capacity and rolling up Hezbollah—the interests of Washington and Tel Aviv coincide. That is why the Israeli regime is now making some concessions to the Palestinians. It is trying to work with the U.S. government to accomplish these broader goals of imperialism in the region.

The Iranian ruling class refuses to act as if this is what’s unfolding and may continue to do so until a U.S. assault materializes.

At the same time, Iran is becoming an increasingly modern society, and the “Islamic fundamentalist” current that dominates the regime has a hard time preventing that process. Discussions and debates on the status of women, cultural events like the Tehran and other book fairs, and changes in everyday life like the increasing sight of young couples holding hands in public are signs of the difficulty in imposing “religious law” at this stage in humanity’s evolution.

What working people in Iran need is political space and time to make breakthroughs and eventually develop a leadership that can lead workers and farmers to power when the next opportunity arises. Key to such a development is not only what happens inside the country, but above all what unfolds outside Iran: the evolution of the class struggle around the world.

In this situation, the obligation for class-conscious workers in the United States and other countries is to keep our fire on Washington and other imperialist powers preparing an assault on Iran.

We urge you to join in opposing the imperialist war drive against Iran by explaining the issues and stakes involved at public forums and social protest actions, selling the Militant, New International, and Pathfinder books during such activities as well as on the job, at plant gates, on campuses and in working-class communities.

Hands off Iran!
 
 
Related article:
G-8 Summit backs U.S. campaign against Iran  
 
 
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