Embassy Hostage Crisis (1979-1981)
Shortly after the 1979 Iranian revolution, revolutionary forces stormed a U.S. embassy in Iran and took its 52 inhabitants hostage. This marked a beginning in conflict between the two countries and lead to the U.S. putting several economic sanctions on Iran and suspending oil imports from Iran. Although Iran's president Abolhassan Banisadr worked to release the hostages as quickly as possible, supreme leader Ruhollah Khomeini distrusted the U.S. and stalled the efforts so that Iran could use the hostages to barter. The situation was finally ended in 1981 with the Algiers accord which exchanged the release of hostages for a U.S. pledge of non-intervention in Iranian politics (Beehner, 2007).
Iran-Contra Affair (1985-1986)
The U.S. government and Iran secretly made a deal in 1985 with the goal of freeing U.S. hostages in Lebanon. The deal involved Israel delivering U.S. made missiles, spare plane parts, and other military parts to the Iran government. In return for this, Iran would use its influence in Lebanon to funnel money to anti-communist groups fighting the Sandinista government in Nicaragua. When the deal went public in the U.S, it was found to have violated congressional law, and several senior Reagan officials were found to be guilty of felonies (Beehner, 2007).
Tensions in the Persia Gulf (1988)
In 1988 a series of U.S. attacks on Iranian ships and planes occurred in the Persia gulf. It began with the U.S. shelling two oil platforms and sinking an Iranian frigate in response to a mine attack against the USS Samuel B. Roberts. An Iranian passenger plane carrying 290 passengers/crew was shot down over the Persian gulf a few months later after being mistaken for a military fighter jet. The U.S. refused to admit any wrongdoing (Beehner, 2007).
Presidency of Mohammed Khatamini (1997-2005)
In 1997, reformist candidate Mohammed Khatamini won the Iran presidential elections with 70% of the countries vote. Upon taking office, Khatamini called for a "dialouge among citizens" and for a peaceful and diplomatic solution between Iran and the U.S. This raised many people's hopes for a new era of diplomatic U.S./Iran relations, and for a while the two countries did begin to compromise (Britannica-Khatamini, 2018).
U.S. Apology to Iran (2000)
43 years after the U.S. coup of Iran's democratically elected prime minister Secretary of State Madeline Albright delivered a speech apologizing for the U.S.'s role in the event. After this speech U.S. president Bill Clinton began to lift several economic sanctions off of Iran. However, the apology wasn't accepted by Iran's religious supreme leader due to Albright's previous criticisms of Iranian domestic policy, they also called the apology "too little and too late." (Beehner, 2007).
Post 9/11 Cooperation (2001)
After the 9/11 terror attacks and the U.S.'s beginning of the War on Terror, Iran was quick to offer aid and diplomatic solutions to Afghan refugees. They also cooperated with the U.S. creating constitutions for areas liberated from the Taliban, causing many U.S. diplomats and Iranian diplomats to work together for the first time. Along with the United States, Iran cooperated with India and Russia. This was likely in an attempt to finally open up diplomatic relations with western countries, but Iran's plan ended early when U.S. president George Bush labelled them as part of an "axis of evil" in his 2002 speech about terror (Beehner, 2007).
Nuclear Weapon Accusations (2002)
Shortly after George Bush's speech about the "axis of evil," the U.S. president accused Iran of developing nuclear weapons, but refused to provide proof. Despite international groups saying that they had found no evidence Iran was developing nuclear weapons, the U.S. put several more sanctions on Iran, hurting their economy (Borger, 2002).
AhmadineJad's Letter (2006)
In 2005, conservative Iranian candidate Mahmoud Ahmadinejad won the Iran presidential elections. In sharp contrast to his predecessor, he distrusted the U.S. and refused to negotiate with them. In 2006, he sent a letter accusing Bush of committing atrocities in Iran and interfering with Iranian politics. He also mentioned 9/11 conspiracy theories in his letter, claiming that the U.S. wasn't revealing all of the information about the attack (Beehner, 2007).
Iran Nuclear Deal (2015)
After a long two terms of an unwilling Iranian president refusing diplomatic relations with the U.S, the elected of Hassan Rouhani marked Iran once again being willing to compromise with western nations. Iran agreed to undergo frequent inspections with the goal of preventing them from developing nuclear weapons, and in return countries such as the U.S. lifted economic sanctions on Iran. U.S. president Barack Obama signed this deal along with endorsement of the U.N. in 2015 and Iran's parliament agreed to the term in the same year (Davenport, 2019).
U.S. Cancels Nuclear Deal (2018)
In 2018, U.S. president Donald Trump fulfilled his campaign promise to cancel the Iran Nuclear deal that Obama had signed. This was done despite several international nuclear agencies confirming that Iran had followed their agreement in the deal. Many European leaders criticized Trump for ending the peaceful agreement and voiding years of diplomatic progress. Iran agreed to remain in the deal, although Hassan Rouhani criticized the U.S. for backing out of it's agreement and re-imposing economic sanctions on Iran. These sanctions lead to a collapsing of Iran's economy and protests nationwide against Rouhani (Baker, 2018).
U.S. declares Iran's military a terrorist group (2019)
In response to claims that Iran's government was supporting terrorists, Trump declared that Iran's military, the revolutionary national guard corps, was a foreign terrorist group. This came after he received warnings from advisors that doing so could help Iran set an anti-U.S. precedent with other nations. In response, Iran declared the U.S. military as a terrorist organization, citing the damage they have done in the middle east (Mekhennet & Cunningham, 2018).
Historical Significance
When the U.S. staged a military coup in Iran, it shattered the relationship between the two countries and that rift hasn't healed almost 70 years in the future. Since the revolution, Iran and the U.S. have been particularly hostile. Due to Iran's anti-U.S. sentiments and constant defiance to U.S. actions, Iran's economy has been crippled by sanctions despite a large oil industry. Compared to other middle-eastern countries like Saudi-Arabia, Iran's economy is on a constant decline. The relations between the countries has affected events such as elections in both countries, Iranian nuclear programs, and has caused protests such as the green movement. Because the tensions between Iran and the U.S. are still high, the true historical significance of their relations has yet to unfold, but it is sure to affect the political landscapes of both countries.