US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has made a surprising revelation: for the past 20 years, the United States has tried—and failed—to change the government in Iran. Speaking at a public event in New York on Wednesday, Blinken openly admitted that these attempts at regime change have not been successful, despite years of effort.
The admission came when Blinken was asked if the US should continue trying to remove the current leadership in Iran. With a laugh, he confessed that the US’s efforts over the past two decades had not been “resounding successes.”
Blinken explained that the failure was partly because the US has not had diplomatic relations with Iran since 1980 when President Jimmy Carter cut ties following the Iranian hostage crisis. Without these relations, it has been difficult for the US to fully understand the situation inside Iran and its complex political dynamics.
He also pointed out that the opposition to the Iranian government is not as clear-cut as it might seem. While there are many Iranians who want change, Blinken acknowledged that a significant part of the population still supports the government, especially the more conservative groups. This made it even harder for the US to successfully stir up opposition from the outside.
Blinken also revealed that the US has tried to support people in Iran who wanted change, providing them with resources to help them stand up for a different future. But, he admitted, this has been a difficult task because it is hard to change a country from the outside.
One of the most serious concerns Blinken raised was the possibility that Iran might be seriously considering building a nuclear weapon. With tensions rising in the Middle East, he suggested that the incoming US president, Donald Trump, would face a critical challenge in negotiating with Iran to prevent it from developing a nuclear bomb.
During his first term in office, Trump pulled the US out of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, which was meant to make it harder for the country to acquire nuclear weapons. He also launched a “maximum pressure campaign” against Iran, which only worsened relations.
In a separate report, the Wall Street Journal revealed that Trump’s team is even considering military options, including the possibility of directly attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities. This comes amid growing concerns about Iran’s nuclear ambitions, making the situation more tense than ever.
Blinken’s comments shed light on the long-standing and complicated relationship between the US and Iran, revealing both the frustration and the challenges of trying to influence a country from afar. The question remains: will the US ever succeed in changing Iran’s regime, or has it already exhausted its options?
