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Salient. Newspaper of the Victoria University Students' Association. Vol 42 No. 7. April 9 1979

The USSR and Iran

The USSR and Iran

Dear Peter,

Patrick Mulrennan's letter in March 19 "Salient" shows he is determined to distort facts to "prove" that my "anti-Sovietism" has no basis.

My article described the collapse of US power and influence in Iran.. No-one can deny the ineptness of US foreign policy during the revolution. Yet Mulrennan still talks as if the US can still mount a threat to Iran. It cannot. This US "weakness" (weakness as an imperialist) has forced countries such as Saudi Arabia to consider a rapproachement with the Soviet Union.

As a result of the decline of US power in Iran and the US's isolation following the recent "peace" settlement the Soviet strategic position in the Middle East has been immeasurably strengthened. They, or their mercenaries, pose the only credible External threat to the Iranian revolution. In the main, the internal blocks have been already broken down.

Mulrennan uses a selective quote to "prove" I ignored the Soviet's contention for the favours of the Shah. He should have quoted the whole phrase "it (the Soviet Union) welcomed the top-ping of the pro-US regime - a regime it had contended for the favours of." Despite Soviet un-preparedness for the Shah's collapse they have still welcomed the new regime and its anti-US stance as the quote from the Tudeh Party in my article Clearly indicated.

If Patrick intends to write on China he should study the pinyin forms of its leaders names a bit better. It is Deng Xiaoping not "Deng Xiao-ping" and Jua Guofeng not "Hua Kuo-Leng".

Finally my best wishes to "Salient" for the rest of this year as I will no longer be writing for it as I am soon to go overseas overseas.

James Morgan

Drawing of people sitting at a bar