Iran and the US were once friends – what happened?

Published

1 year ago

January 30, 2024

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It seems strange to think in this chaotic febrile epoch we are living in, but once upon a time Iran and the United States were friends.

But the Islamic Revolution of 1979 changed that, and since then the two states have seen tensions escalate again and again.

So much so, that there’s now the real possibility of a direct confrontation between the two foes.

The killing of three American servicemen in Jordan by Iranian-backed militias is the latest episode in a bitter rivalry that’s now four decades old.

But let’s first wind back.

British and US intelligence were pivotal in helping the Iranian military overthrow Iran’s prime minister, Mohammad Mossadeq, in 1953.

This intervention, or meddling, as it was seen in the country, brought back to power the unpopular western-leaning monarchy of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was heavily dependent on US support for his power.

At the heart of this support was the promise of access to the country’s natural resources, particularly oil.

But, this alliance would soon be disrupted.

In 1979 the ground starts shifting across the country with a wave of civil unrest and popular protest.

This uprising would see the grand ayatollah, Ruhollah Khomeini, return from years of exile – his platform and power fuelled by vehement opposition to what he considered a servile pro-western monarchy.

Taking power with an iron grip, the new Supreme Leader would transform the country into a radical Islamic theocracy.

But this takeover would not end at Iran’s borders.

At the heart of the transformation, there was a desire to spread the revolution to neighbouring countries – a project that continues to this day.

In 1985 the emerging militant group Hezbollah pledged its allegiance to Khomeini – that relationship has gone from strength to strength.

And thanks to Iran’s patronage Hezbollah is now the most powerful militant group in the world, often described as a state within a state in Lebanon.

The spread of Iranian influence would grow exponentially over the next four decades, increasingly setting the country on a collision course with the United States and its allies.

The first big clash came quickly.

It arose after 52 American diplomats and citizens were taken hostage at the US embassy by radical Iranian students.

They were held for 444 days from 4 November 1979 until their release in 1981.

The US saw this as a serious breach of international law, but in Iran it was viewed as a blow against excessive US influence and meddling in the country.

It also burnished the credentials of the new regime, who opposed normalising relations with western countries – particularly America, which was labelled the Great Satan by the ayatollahs in their increasingly fiery speeches about foreign policy.

Operation Eagle Claw – a disastrous US attempt to free the hostages – saw a helicopter crash into a transport aircraft, causing a fire that killed eight servicemen.

During this time the US had cut diplomatic ties with Iran and banned most trade – things were not looking great.

In 1980 Iraq invaded Iran – the countries had been massive rivals but were now at war. The United States lent its hefty support to Iraq led by Saddam Hussein. The fighting, which dragged on until 1988, saw huge casualties on both sides but it is estimated as many as one million Iranians died in the conflict.

Relations with the US would remain bad. The Beirut Barracks bombing, Operation Praying Mantis, the Iran-Contra Affair and sanctions were the punctuation marks for two countries ideologically opposed, that were seemingly always at, or close to conflict.

That was until 1998 when there appeared to be glimmers of hope that relations were improving. Secretary of state Madeleine Albright met with Iran’s deputy foreign minister – it was the highest level contact since the revolution but it would not last.

A few years later in 2002 and in a seminal speech President George Bush was labelling Iran as part of the “axis of evil” – its bedfellows Iraq and North Korea.

US officials would also claim Iran was operating a clandestine nuclear programme with the intent of building a bomb.

These were the years after 9/11.

Attempts to reach diplomatic understandings since then have mostly ended in failure.

President Barack Obama tried to use the carrot of sanctions relief to tame Iran’s nuclear program.

The agreement would eventually emerge as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

It was hoped that the deal would steer Iran away from the big bomb, or at the very least slow progress; but many Republicans viewed it with suspicion arguing that it – along with the lifting of sanctions – gave the Iranians more power to spread their pernicious influence across the region.

Enter stage Donald Trump. Exit stage deal. The one-time – but perhaps soon to be two – US president ripped up the agreement when he withdrew America from the JCPOA.

Iran and America were soon back in a spiral of escalation. President Trump would later designate the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) a terror organisation.

Perhaps, the most significant event that underlines how broken the relationship is and how far apart the two countries have become came in the form of a US drone strike on 3 January 2020.

Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the IRGC Quds force and one of the most powerful men in Iran – and by extension the region – was killed in the attack in Baghdad.

The American action sent shockwaves through the Middle East and Iran vowed revenge.

The regime also stated it would no longer restrict its nuclear program.

All of this forms the backdrop to current events. It is hard to see in the present climate how things can improve.

In fact, with the war raging in Gaza and Iranian-backed militias across the region taking pot shots at US forces, things look set to get even worse.

World

Nine killed in Russian attack on civilian bus, Ukraine’s military says

Published

16 hours ago

May 17, 2025

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Nine killed in Russian attack on civilian bus, Ukraine's military says

A Russian attack on a civilian bus in Ukraine’s northeast Sumy region has killed nine people and injured four others, the Ukrainian military has said.

“Medics and rescuers have been urgently sent to the scene,” Ihor Tkachenko, head of Sumy’s military administration, said on Telegram.

Russia’s TASS state news agency said the defence ministry had claimed Russian forces struck a Ukrainian military equipment staging area in the Sumy region with drones.

The deaths prompted a strong response from Ukraine’s National Police on the Telegram messaging app: “This is not just another shelling – it is a cynical war crime”.

Ukraine’s police posted photos of a dark blue passenger van nearly destroyed, with the roof torn off and the windows blown out.

The attack comes hours after Russia and Ukraine held their first direct peace talks in three years.

The meeting of Russian and Ukrainian officials in Turkey on Friday failed to broker a temporary ceasefire.

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World

Up to a million Palestinians could be ‘permanently relocated’ to war-torn Libya under US plans

Published

20 hours ago

May 17, 2025

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Up to a million Palestinians could be 'permanently relocated' to war-torn Libya under US plans

Up to a million Palestinians could be permanently relocated from devastated Gaza to war-torn Libya under plans being worked on by Donald Trump’s administration, NBC News reports.

The idea has been discussed with Libya’s leadership, sources told Sky’s US partner network, and would potentially see billions of dollars in frozen Libyan funds released.

The North African country remains divided in two – nearly 14 years after the overthrow of dictator Muammar Gaddafi sparked a civil war – with two rival governments fighting for control.

It comes as Israel continues a campaign of airstrikes on Gaza, with 93 people killed and hundreds injured on Friday, according to local medics.

No final agreement on any Libya plans have been reached, sources told NBC News, and US government agencies did not respond to requests for comment from the news outlet.

Previous suggestions to resettle Palestinians from Gaza – voluntarily or otherwise – have provoked international outcry, particularly from Arab states who likely will play a role in rebuilding the enclave after any permanent ceasefire deal.

And Libya is far from a safe nation, according to the US State Department’s own travel advice, which says Americans should not travel to the country “due to crime, terrorism, unexploded landmines, civil unrest, kidnapping, and armed conflict”.

President Trump, speaking on the final day of his Middle East trip, said he was looking to resolve a range of global crises, including Gaza.

“We’re looking at Gaza,” he said. “And we’ve got to get that taken care of. A lot of people are starving. A lot of people are – there’s a lot of bad things going on.”

There had been hopes that his tour of the region could increase the chances of a ceasefire deal or prompt Israel to lift its blockade of Gaza that is preventing humanitarian aid from getting in.

But instead Israel has continued to launch airstrikes on the territory, killing more than 250 people in the last two days, according to Hamas-run health authorities.

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The Israeli military, which had dropped leaflets on the northern town of Beit Lahia ordering residents to leave, said their airforce had struck more than 150 military targets across Gaza in recent days.

This week, Israel said it had bombed the European Hospital because it was home to an underground Hamas base, but Sky News analysis has cast doubt on its evidence.

Israeli officials said the latest strikes were a prelude to a larger military campaign in Gaza aimed at pressuring Hamas to release hostages.

Ahmed Abu Riziq, founder of the Gaza Great Minds Foundation, which seeks to give children access to education in Gaza, said “the hell doors opened” in the last few days.

Speaking to Sky News from Gaza City, he said: “Myself with my family, we had to flee today from some certain areas in northern Gaza City… people are running in the streets. They don’t know where to go or where to sleep at night. So it’s really catastrophic.”

“No food is entering Gaza,” he added, saying that people are dying from hunger.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said this month that Israel plans to seize all of Gaza and hold it indefinitely.

Tom Fletcher, head of the UN office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs, warned the Security Council this week it must “act now” to “prevent genocide” – a claim Israel vehemently denies.

World

First Russia-Ukraine talks since 2022 agree POW swap – but last less than two hours

Published

20 hours ago

May 17, 2025

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First Russia-Ukraine talks since 2022 agree POW swap - but last less than two hours

Russia and Ukraine failed to agree to a ceasefire in their first direct talks since 2022 – as European leaders called Moscow’s approach “unacceptable” after the discussions lasted less than two hours and Vladimir Putin stayed away.

The meeting in Istanbul, Turkey, was set up at short notice on President Putin‘s behest, but he declined a challenge from Volodymyr Zelenskyy to meet him in person and instead sent relatively junior representatives.

A source in the Ukrainian team told Sky News that Russia had threatened “eternal war” during the talks.

They said the Russians were not ready to talk about technical details of a ceasefire and were waiting for superiors to approve them.

Latest updates on Istanbul talks

Both countries said they had agreed to trade 1,000 prisoners of war each in what would be the biggest such exchange yet of the conflict.

But Kyiv wants the West to impose tighter sanctions unless Moscow accepts a proposal from Donald Trump for a 30-day ceasefire.

President Zelenskyy said after the meeting that he had spoken to Mr Trump by phone – alongside Sir Keir Starmer and the leaders of France, Germany and Poland – who all met in Albania on Friday.

In a post on X, he said Ukraine was “ready to take the fastest possible steps to bring real peace” and that “tough sanctions must follow” if Russia continues to resist a month-long truce.

Frustration over Russia‘s perceived stalling in holding serious negotiations was also clear from the European leaders gathered in Tirana.

“The Russian position is clearly unacceptable, and not for the first time,” said Sir Keir.

“So as a result of that meeting with President Zelenskyy and that call with President Trump we are now closely aligning our responses and will continue to do so.”

The UK prime minister said the no-show by Russia’s leader was “more evidence that Putin is not serious about peace” and has “been dragging his heels”.

NATO secretary-general Mark Rutte, who was also in Albania, said President Putin had made a “big mistake” by sending low-level delegates to Istanbul.

A list of representatives ahead of the meeting listed presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky, deputy foreign minister Galuzin Mikhail Yuryevich and deputy defence chief Alexander Fomin.

Ukraine’s delegation was led by defence minister Rustem Umerov.

President Zelenskyy had called the Russian team “a theatre prop” ahead of the summit in the Dolmabahce Palace.

However, Turkey’s foreign minister heralded it as “an important day for world peace” and said Russia and Ukraine had agreed to swap 1,000 POWs each as a “confidence-building measure”.

Hakan Fidan shared a picture of the delegations and said they had “agreed to share with the other side in writing the conditions that would make it possible to reach a ceasefire”.

Russia’s Vladimir Medinsky said his team had “taken note” of the Ukrainian request for direct talks between Mr Putin and Mr Zelenskyy.

“We have agreed that each side will present its vision of a possible future ceasefire and spell it out in detail,” said Mr Medinsky.

Hopes ahead of the meeting were low after Mr Trump and his secretary of state, Marco Rubio, played down the prospect of meaningful progress.

The US president told reporters on Air Force One on Thursday “nothing’s going to happen until Putin and I get together”, while Mr Rubio said a “breakthrough” was unlikely until the US and Russian presidents meet.

No date for such a meeting has been proposed, but Mr Trump has said it will happen “as soon as we can set it up”.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that top-level talks were “certainly needed” but arranging it would take time.

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov was a notable absentee, despite attending Ukraine-focused talks with the US in Saudi Arabia in February.

Russia has so far failed to agree to a 30-day unconditional ceasefire – proposed by European leaders who have threatened Moscow with “massive” sanctions if it doesn’t sign up. The US also supports the plan.

The Kremlin has ambitions to keep swathes of Ukrainian land as part of any long-term truce, an idea that Kyiv firmly rejects.

Russia also wants an end to Ukraine’s NATO ambitions and a promise it will stay neutral.