Iran’s Foreign Policy in 1933-1939: Problems of Diversifying Relations with Leading World Powers

Abstract

The article is devoted to the problems of modernizing Iran’s foreign policy strategy on the eve of World War II, the implementation of a set of measures to diversify its relations with the leading world powers. The factors influencing the formation of the conflict relations of Iran with Great Britain and the USSR are revealed. The features of the nationalist policy of the Reza Shah regime, aimed at liberating the country from British control and weakening Soviet influence in the country, are traced. Particular attention is paid to the formation of a pro-German course in Iran’s foreign policy. The author emphasizes that the ideological factor (Nazi propaganda about the common Aryan origin of the Germans and Iranians) played an important role in the rapprochement of the Shah’s regime of Iran with the Nazi leadership of Germany. It is stated that the rapprochement of Iran with Germany contributed to the growth of tension in Europe, the intensification of the confrontation between the bloc of fascist states and the camp of anti-fascist forces. It is also noted that as a result of the Iranian-German rapprochement, Moscow’s relations with Tehran found themselves in a crisis situation: the strengthening of Nazi influence in Iran prompted the USSR leadership to take urgent measures to ensure reliable protection of the country’s southern borders against the threat of a German attack.