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Iranian Coup
The 1953 Iranian coup was the overthrow of Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh and his cabinet in Iran, It was created by the United Kingdom and the United States. -
The Iranian Revolution
President Carter criticized the Shah's regime and its poor human rights record. The Shah responded to Carter's request for change by taking steps towards liberalization. The Iranian people, on the other hand, grew weary of repression and corruption, which the Iranians believed was inextricably linked to the United States. At the request of the Iranian prime minister, the Shah left Iran and Khomeini became the new leader of Iran. -
Iran Hostage Crisis
A group of Iranian students stormed the American Embassy in Tehran and took 63 American Embassy personnel hostage. The arrival of the Shah to the U.S. instigated Iranian unrest, which led to the invasion of the U.S. Embassy. It evoked memories of the 1953 coup and aroused fear that the U.S. was planning another coup to restore the Shah to power. The U.S. then responded with a failed military action, resulting in the deaths of eight Americans. The hostage crisis served as the defining moment of t -
Operation Praying Mantis
The United States launched Operation Praying Mantis against Iran, claiming that it was retaliation for the Iranian mining of areas of the Persian Gulf as part of the Iran-Iraq war. The American attack was the largest American naval combat operation since World War II -
Iran Air Flight 655
Iran Air Flight 655 was shot down by the USS Vincennes in the gulf. All 290 people on board the plane were killed. The following thing happened again a month earlier. -
Axis of Evil
In his State of the Union Address in 2002, President Bush labeled Iran as part of the "˜Axis of Evil,' outraging the Iranian leadership.Iran responded with a public statement: "the Islamic Republic is proud to be a target of the hate and anger of the world's greatest evil; we never seek to be praised by American officials." In 2003 Iran made a offer to try and imporve relations. Iran put several different issues on the table including an offer, within the framework of the negotiations, to disar -
Bush Speech
Bush backpedals from his usual hard-line stance and says the US will back the EU negotiating track, offering economic incentives in exchange for Iran abandoning its nuclear aspirations. -
US attacks Iran
Members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard are allegedly arrested in Iraq by US forces for engaging in sectarian warfare. A few days after lumping Iran in with al-Qaeda in his State of the Union address, Bush clarifies that he does not intend to attack Iran. -
Iran Nuclear Research
A US intelligence report says that Iran halted its nuclear weapons programme earlier in 2003: but was still continuing uranium enrichment. Ahmadinejad hails the US report as an Iranian victory, but Bush says Iran risks further international isolation if it does not reveal the full extent of its nuclear activities. -
Iran leading Terrorism?
Khamanei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, says relations could be restored with the US in the future. The US accuses Iran of harassing US Navy ships in the Strait of Hormuz.Bush accuses Iran of being the world's leading sponsor of terrorism. -
Obama administration
The Obama administration continues to signal that they are ready for direct talks with Iran, but promises further pressure if they do not halt their nuclear activity. Ahmadinejad says that the US must make sweeping changes to its foreign policy.
