ABSTRACT
The Iranian Revolution of February 1979 served to bring about fundamental changes in domestic and foreign policy. One of these fundamental changes concerned energy, and specifically oil policy. Indeed, it may not be an exaggeration to argue that oil was the central theme in the struggle to overthrow the Shah. Ever since the discovery of oil in Masjid-e-Soleiman in 1908, oil has played a major role in shaping the destiny of Iran. Iranian politics and nationalistic sentiments have for long been associated with a struggle against foreign domination of the Iranian oil industry. That the 1953 US-backed coup which brought the Shah back to power was motivated primarily by the Western interest in Iran’s oil was a factor which plagued the Shah for twenty-five years, denying him the legitimacy of an independent political leader.
