Iran΄s Sights Set High 30 Years after Revolution

Source: Al-Manar TV, 07-02-2009

Thirty years after the Islamic revolution, Iran retains its history to emerge as a regional power. "One of the slogans of the revolution was independence, and this has been achieved 100 percent," Mohammed Sadegh al-Hosseini, an expert on regional issues said.

"The Shah also wanted to emerge as a regional player with the backing of the United States but today, decisions... good or bad, are made in Tehran." The United States had stationed thousands of soldiers and advisers in Iran during the regime of the shah, who was also one of the biggest buyers of American weaponry.

But with the revolution of 1979 and the subsequent severing of diplomatic relations following the capture of the US embassy in Tehran, Iran turned its back on Washington. Thirty years later the oft-chanted slogan "Death to America" remains relevant, especially since the ascent to the presidency in 2005 of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

The Islamic republic's regional ambitions have raised concerns not only in Washington but also among European and Arab countries.
Iran's Ambassador to Turkmenistan Mohammad Keshavarz-Zadeh said the initial mottos of the Islamic revolution were still echoing in Iran.

Talking to reporters, he said the Iranian nation was still following the initial ideals of the revolution which were independence, freedom and establishment of an Islamic system in the country.
He believed 30 years after the victory of the revolution, the Iranian nation has managed to gain remarkable achievements in political, economic, cultural and scientific arenas.

Referring to the strategic position of Iran in the Middle East that acts as a crossroads between Asia, Europe, the Central Asia and Caucasia, the ambassador pointed to Iran's nuclear and space projects as tokens of its rapid trend of growth in the past three decades.