The People's Republic is not Poland; the Islamic Republic is not Iran
There are two anniversaries related to the Cold War that have just been commemorated. First is the 1946 triumph of Iran under the Pahlavi Dynasty over the Soviet-backed separatists, and second is the 1981 imposition of martial law in Poland by the puppet Communist regime. Both of these are of vast significance in the annals of the Cold War.
The Soviet Union, having worked to gobble up half of Europe and subject it to Communist tyranny for four decades, had also worked to spread Communism around the world. Part of it was extending its influence into Iran, which would have had grave consequences for the world had they succeeded. To do this, they more or less backed separatist movements in north-west Iran.
In December 1946, Iran under Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi liberated Iranian Azerbaijan from the separatists. This is celebrated by Iranians worldwide every December 12 as a reminder to the world that Iranians cherish national unity and territorial integrity and tolerate no separatist threats. It is astonishing that certain neoconservative lobbyists have given a platform to people who support the same ideas today.
And so, Poland. Anti-Communist resistance was always robust in Poland, not least because of the influence of the Catholic Church. In 1980, Solidarnosc (Solidarity) was formed and led the greatest acts of defiance against Communism, backed by international well-wishers. This is a stark contrast between then and the protests in Iran today, where a large swathe of the international community has been indifferent.
The Pahlavi Dynasty resurrected the great Iranian nation after a long period of decline and stagnation, only for the Islamic Republic to undo the good work and plunge Iran into a period of darkness continuing today. Poland, on the other hand, has been partitioned twice and occupied by foreign powers, only to be reborn as a nation-state. Just as the Polish people reclaimed their nation, so the Iranian people will reclaim what is theirs. The Islamic Republic is not Iran, just as the People’s Republic was not Poland.