SHAH! SHAH! SHAH! That massed shout from the elite of the Iranian army last week chilled the bones of even the most hardened Western journalists.
The march past of the 2,000-strong Javidan brigade at the Lavizan military base near Tehran was the curtain raiser for the occupation of Tehran airport the next day.
On that occasion the move by the army was approved by Bakhtiar-Shah government. A future воуснель gat not be so lucky.
The danger of a coup will remain as long as the repressive apparatus built by the Shah is intact.
The top ranks of the army face a bleak future. Even the Bakhtiar-Shah government has been forced to say that it will bring those responsible for the crimes of the last 25 years to justice. While Bakhtiar won't do it the masses certainly will try.
The only army top brass who would escape such an offensive will be those who follow the example of the Shah.
Nevertheless unere are powerful factors against a coup. Although the professional ranks of the army remain intact, the conscripts have not been used in any systematic way against the the attitude of the major imperialist powers, in particular the USA and to a much lesser extent Britain.
These are the powers which have helped to turn the Iranian army into a force which today has at least twice the soldiers and armaments of the British army.
Thanks to the USA the Iranian airforce has the most advanced fighter planes, and helicopter gunships; the the navy sophisticated submarines frigates.
Thanks to Britain assembled a mighty hovercraft force suitable for the invasion of the Gult states, the beginning of the Rapier tracked missile forces and the latest Chieftain tanks.
All this armoury was assembled so that the Shah and the USA could realise their common goal of Iran acting as imperialist policeman in the Middle East.
But now it is the helicopters and tanks which come to the tore — not to beat the Russian threat, but to meet the masses.
If it is the imperialists who will eventually decide the question of a coup in the light of the development of the mass movement in Iran then it falls to the labour movement, particularly in What would tip the balance would be | the USA and Britain, to make their governments certain what the popular response would be.
One of the best ways in which American and British workers can act is to break the links of iron and steel which bind the Iranian army to the imperialist powers.
The tanks strike force of any coup on American and British spares and technical assistance. Guardian journaland ist Martin Woollacott has calculated that the helicopters would be grounded the Shah in a month if compelled to withdraw its maintenance force and supply of parts Likewise the would grind to a halt if the British government and the Vickers engineering group were forced to do likewise.
The Shir Iran tanks that the British government-owned factories and the Vickers Engineering group are building are part of a massive order for 2,000 tanks placed by the Shah.
The tank was ordered directly from the British government - the main contractor being the Barnbow Royal Ordnance factory in Leeds.
Based on the Chieftain tank, the Shir Iran is protected by the new Chobham plastic reintorced armour.
finder.
and helicopters plant in are reliant Bell Helicopters were some are subcontracted Team Valley armoured divisions Royal Ordnance Hawker The Vickers can to ensure that this country does not fail to secure its rightful share of this valuable commercial market was initially little more of the sales different armed It has since developed into a streamlined sales broker, organised on a geographical rather than service-byagency the DO can direct business such state broking where it chooses. Its criteria may be commercial - It shows no tavours towards state-armed arms factories The 1977 Racal bribes trial revealed how two directors of a Racal subsidiary bribed a colonel employed by the DSO contract to sell military family. communications equipment to Iran.
Racal is another company with 1948-54, longstanding relation with the DSO The DO's founder Head was a Racal director and Sir Lester Suffield, who was Head at the time of the bribes, was powerful tank gun in the world. It uses sophisticated surveillance and firing systems including infra-red sights for night time operation and a laser range The tank is assembled by the chief production subcontractor, Vickers, at the Elswick ANCWCASEE Armour platt comes from the old Vickers British Steel plant in Sheffield. Turrets and guns come from the Royal Ordnance factories in Nottingham and Leeds.
Of the thousands of smaller parts to other Vickers plants at Scotswood, Crayford, and occasionally dockers Thetford. The engine will come from Monitoring either British Leyland or Rolls Royce.
Campaigners for solidarity with the people of Iran have already started activity against the supply of these tanks. In Leeds leaflets were distributed to AUEW shop stewards, calling for 'No loss of Lives, No loss of Jobs!' They appealed to workers at the Barnbow factory to stockpile the tanks and parts and prevent their export to Iran. This takes up the example of the Siddeley workers, who hoarded aircraft engines that were due to be given to the Chilean airforce National Combine Committee of Shop Stewards has alleged to have had a close business relationship' with Racal's chairperson. International Military Services is the British state's military contractor.
Reporter of the year SIR Shapoor Reporter, until recently was the key figure in arms deals with Iran, is a larger than life figure - a spiy on the grand scale. His career is a good illustration of the sort of people used by the arms trade and how Anglo-Iranian relations are conducted He was a psychological warfare expert in India in 1941-43 and later attached himself to the Iranian royal All the while he kept his link periodie f the period the US-engineered coup in Iran, the British lent Reporter to the CIA.
He was the Shah's foremost business