A lesson in revolutionary commitment: Iran’s march to the world stage

By Shabbir Rizvi

“America can't do a damn thing against us," said Imam Khomeini, shortly after the groundbreaking Islamic Revolution of 1979 that he spearheaded.

The Islamic Republic of Iran continues to prove his immortal words true. Imam Khomeini's worthy successor and Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, often repeats these words with extraordinary conviction.

Considering that Iran has been in the crosshairs of the US war machine since the very onset of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, it is a remarkable feat that the proud Iranian nation continues to march ahead at a galloping pace despite crippling sanctions.

In fact, if 2023 was any nation’s year, it would certainly be the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The pragmatic and progressive foreign policy of President Ebrahim Raeisi has enabled the Islamic Republic to forge powerful ties from Latin America, to Africa, all the way to far east Asia.

Through these new alliances, the Islamic Republic of Iran has inked many trade deals - from energy to medical technologies - particularly keeping countries that are also targeted by US warhawks very close - Venezuela, Cuba, and Russia, just to name a few.

Pushing the envelope even further this year was Iran’s entry into the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and finally the golden ticket - an invitation and acceptance into the BRICS group of emerging economies.

Iran’s current administration has enabled the Islamic Republic to uncover limitless pathways to trade and development, as well as potential security alliances - demonstrated by joint military drills with Russia and China

Though President Raeisi’s remarkable foreign policy does indeed deserve a standing ovation from every anti-imperialist, these achievements would not come to fruition if it were not for the mission and principles of the Islamic Revolution itself.

Since day one of the revolution, Iran has committed itself to not only self-determination as a nation - but to uniting the Muslim community and worldwide, to breaking the grip of imperialist-colonialist powers within the region and beyond, and of course, the complete and total liberation of Palestine.

This has not been an empty political rhetoric. Iran has very much walked the talk.

Just take a look at the late anti-terror commander General Qassem Soleimani's illustrious life and legacy. The Soleimani doctrine wasn’t limited to just the deployment of the Quds Force and Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) against threats to Iran’s borders.

General Soleimani, representing the very principles of the Islamic Revolution, was on the frontlines in Syria and Iraq - fighting side by side with the Syrian Arab Army, Hezbollah resistance group and Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (Hashd al-Shaabi) against Daesh terrorists and American-backed proxies.

The famed anti-terror commander would often meet with Palestinian resistance leaders, training their forces and facilitating rocket development to enable them to fight the Israeli occupation forces.

In a world system dominated by the imperialist West, these actions would come with severe consequences. The US placed sanctions on not only the IRGC, which General Soleimani represented but on various Iranian enterprises that directly impacted thousands of ordinary Iranian people.

Donald Trump Administration pulled out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), commonly known as the 'Iran nuclear deal,” and labeled the IRGC a terrorist group a year later, inflicting more unjust and illegal sanctions.

These are just some examples of Iran’s independent pursuits and the West’s diabolic response within a small time frame. Throughout the decades there were many attempts by foreign powers to force Iran out of pursuing its revolutionary goals.

Who can forget former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's imposed eight-year war on Iran, militarily backed by a far-right-led United States and a decaying Soviet Union? Or former US President George Bush naming Iran in his infamous “Axis Of Evil” speech, followed by increasing US hostilities around Iran’s borders?

And of course, just in recent memory, who can forget the West-wide chorus of support for the foreign-plotted “women life freedom” riots that briefly shook Iran in late 2022, only two years after the West imposed “maximum pressure sanctions” during the COVID-19 pandemic, killing scores of those very same women the West allegedly speaks for?

Time and time again, Iran has stood up for what is right and just and has been met with shockingly murderous to downright genocidal responses from the West.

The pain felt by Iranians cannot be ignored, but all the same, their tenacity and unflinching determination to carry forward the torch of the revolution cannot either.

While other Muslim nations have had their leaders pursue normalization with the Israeli occupation, Iran doubled down on support both politically and materially for Palestine. While some leaders sacrificed their people’s resources to the predatory capitalists of the West, Iran invested in self-dependence.

While some leaders in Asia brazenly shook hands with the West and let their land and resources be used for America’s imperialist conquests, Iran prepared a meticulous counterweight in the form of various Islamic resistance organizations. 

While other countries now have blood on their hands and are buried under the weight of predatory debtors, Iran has emerged victorious - never abandoning the original commitments to the Islamic Revolution.

It is this tenacity and commitment to the revolution founded by Imam Khomeini and carried forward by Ayatollah Khamenei that is entwined with Iran’s traditional Shia Islam beliefs. After all, it is an Islamic Revolution, and the revolution itself is far from complete.

Israeli regime still oppresses Palestinians. Americans are still embedded deep within Syria and Iraq. Western mercenaries and spies run amok from Lebanon to Pakistan. And the West’s mechanisms still threaten the complete unity of Muslims worldwide (the Ummah).

“By God, I will never surrender to my enemies like a humiliated person and never pledge allegiance to them like slaves,” These words from Imam Hussain ibn Ali (AS) accurately convey the message of Iran’s orientation to its foes, and thus this outlook is a cornerstone of the Islamic Republic’s foreign policy.

This sheer revolutionary fervor has now placed Iran - despite all odds and opposition - on the world stage.

Standing shoulder to shoulder with the BRICS member countries, the Islamic Republic has yet again demonstrated to the world that a nation must never abandon its principles in order to forge ahead. It is these principles that propel a nation's growth.

For Iran, the Islamic Revolution must be carried forward. With Iran’s diplomatic successes, technological breakthroughs and favorable geopolitical conditions, the nation is more enabled than ever to advance its external interests, and as a result, improve its internal conditions as well.

Iran’s newfound successes will without a doubt be met with new challenges. The imperialist enemies of Iran will feel more threatened by the rising Islamic nation’s success and will feel inclined to lash out - whether that be through economic warfare, sabotage, or other means. Nothing Iran isn’t used to, or already counting on.

Indeed, America can’t do a damn thing.

Shabbir Rizvi is a Chicago-based political analyst with a focus on US internal security and foreign policy.

(The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of Press TV)

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