Guardians of the Revolution: Iran and the World in the age of the

Ayatollahs

Author: Ray Takeyh

Publisher: Oxford University Press
Year of publication: 2009

This book is an insightful navigation of Iran’s political history since the

revolution in 1979 to understand its past, present and future role in relation

to the West, in general and the US in particular. The author poses and

answers some of the key questions such as, “What kind of the state is the

Islamic republic of Iran? Is it still a revolutionary regime bent upon upending

the prevailing order, or is it prepared to accommodate the mandates of the

international community?” (p.1)

Takeyh begins his response by cautiously stating that, “More than any other

Middle Eastern country, Iran defines easy characterization” (p.1).

And, therefore, suggests that “the best way to of understanding the Islamic

Republic’s priorities is to expand canvass and expand and assess its foreign

policy over the entire duration of its existence.”(p.1).Emphasizing this point

more strongly, the author further clarifies the popular “..notion that Iran’s

hegemonic claims began with the revolution is a misreading of history”.(p.1)

So in order to provide an expanded canvass, the book travels through four

distinct periods in Iran after 1979: the revolutionary era of the 1980s, the

tempered gradualism following the death of Khomeini and the end of the

Iran-Iraq war in 1989, the "reformist" period from 1997-2005 under President

Khatami, and the shift toward confrontation and radicalism since the election

of President Ahmadinejad in 2005.

Takeyh explains, in the present Iran, the rise of the New Right, a group of

conservatives headed by Ayatollah Khamenei and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

who have slowly gained the control of the Iranian government. This can be

seen as the manifestation of the Ayatollah Khomeini’s vision in the light of

the author words, “The genius of Khomeini was his ability to weave his

dogma into theocracy‘s governing fabric. Through the constitutional

arrangements that he crafted and a dedicated cadre that he molded,

Khomeini ensured the survival of his vision” (p.2)

The relationship between Iran and the US has been on decline. This has been

the case for over a quarter of century now. After Ayatollah Khomeini

overthrew the Shah with Iranian revolution, the US and Iran has been on a

high-rhetoric mode. For Iran, US is a Great Satan whereas for the US, Iran’s

an Axis of Evil. This war of rhetoric can have serious repercussions. Takeyh

intends to address this through his mature analysis and suggestions on

policy-change on the part of the US. He argues that the US policy makers

have to view Iran with a more complex and sophisticated way and not just in

the light of 1979 anti-American Revolution. He reminds his readers, who are
primarily the foreign policymakers of the US, rather subtly, that the

revolution in Iran is over and that things have changed. It is therefore not

helpful to continue to view Iran as a politically monolithic state without

taking into account the internal disagreements and factions thus terming its

leadership as straight evil.

Instead, the author offers candid insights into Iranian politics, delving into

the origins of the Islamic Revolution of 1979 and tracking its evolution over

the past 30 years. In his insights he argues that figures instrumental in

building and sustaining the Islamic Revolution such as Mir Hossein Mussavi,

Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Ali Larijani, Mohammad Khatami, and Hosein-Ali

Montazeri are now radically opposed to the regime of a New Right, a group

of conservatives headed by Ayatollah Khamenei and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

who are running the Iranian government today. This government has not

only withdrawn the previous reforms but has also blatantly antagonized the

United States and the Arab nations. Additionally, it has pursued power-

ambitions such as nuclear program, has extended support to groups like

Hezbollah and has increased its commercial ties.

As a result of this, Takeyh believes, Iran has become an important player in

the region and the policy of antagonism with it may not be very effective.

With the new Obama administration in place, it must reverse the

containment policies of the Bush era; otherwise Iran will act increasingly like

a cornered animal. And since Iran is a preeminent military power in the

region, being the only country with long- and medium-range missiles, it is
but necessary to have favorable ties with it. This is more crucial because of

the present differences between Iran and Israel and their tensions being at

an all-time high. Given the nuclear ambitions of Iran and its ties with groups’

like Hezbollah, there is a serious prospect of regional war in the absence of

regional integration. The United States has the power and influence to help

avert such a crisis.

To do this, the author suggests the strategy of engagement and regional

integration. He portrays Iran as a new regional power with strong military,

vast natural resources, potential nuclear capacity, and influence throughout

the region. Instead of antagonism, the author also offers an alternative

measure such as building of a regional security network of all Middle Eastern

countries to engage in dialogue and partnership to protect their own interest.

The book’s demystification of Iran breaks many myths about Iran as a

country, which is totally misunderstood in the US today. “The key challenge”,

therefore, Takeyh writes, “for the Unites States is to ascertain how to deal

with the state that is too powerful to ignore and whose influence cannot be

easily contained”. (p.7)

This text hopes to see a new US-Iran relationship in which US will include, in

its vision of Iran , the existing realties on ground and will project itself as a

sincere and honest ally rather than antagonistic and manipulative super

power. This, the author believes, will pacify Iran’s fears and anger and it may

abandon or at least control its power ambitions. The words of the author

succinctly summarizes this as follows, “By choice and chance, Iran has now
emerged as a leading power of the Middle East, whereby its preferences and

predilections have to be taken into consideration as the region contemplates

its future”.

And, thus, recommending a clear policy-change on the part of the US

agencies. Ray Takeyh, with both, his deep historical insights and his grip on nuance, offers a

book that can easily be a standard text to understand the internal dynamics of Iran and the way

forward to have a stable relationship with the US. This should become an important reading for

the academics working on contemporary Iran as well as the policymakers’ experts especially in

the new Obama Administration.