British Diplomatic Oil Crisis: Contemporary Anglo-Saxon Geopolitical Rivalries in the Persian Gulf: Drawing a Lesson? Or Sir Anthony Eden‘s Delusion of Grandeur.

The Lord President, Lord
Salisbury, in a brief statement told the
Cabinet.

there was a reason to
believe that, if the military coup d’etat had
not succeeded a Communist revolution would have been attempted.43

According to the British Government,

Geographically Persia
enjoys a key position in the Middle East. It
would be a most serious strategic blow for the free world if she
were to fall under Communist domination, particularly because of the
increased threat to the other Middle East oil fields which would
result.

Her Majesty’s Government,
therefore, wish to see a politically
stable country, free from the danger of Communist domination.44

The
Observer wrote, ‘there need no longer be a Persian
problem,’ 45 welcoming the operation of 19th
August 1953. On 5th May 1953, Selwyn Lloyd had written to Churchill
saying, ‘the department thought it unwise to give him [Musaddiq]
another opportunity, particularly now that the Americans and we
agreed that Musaddiq hopeless.’ 46

The new
government of General Zahedi, soon after coming into office,
spoke of Iran’s deep economic problem, and was determined to reach a
settlement