Synopsis
This book reports the dramatic experiences of the last American ambassador to Iran during the revolution of 1978-79. It is an account of the events, the personalities, and the institutions in Iran as seen through the eyes of the man who, at the time, was the senior U.S. Foreign Service career officer on active duty. It is also a story of the policy failures of the Carter administration as viewed from the American Embassy in Teheran.
Ambassador Sullivan tells of his many meetings with the shah and gives a unique insight into the character, the moods, and the motivations of that complicated man. He explores the political, economic, and social backgrounds of the opposition to the shah, and in doing so shows us the force of Islam in Iranian society and the flat impossibility of the shah's attempts to industrialize the country. Other highlights of this eminently readable narrative include the General Huyser mission, which Washington mindlessly thought could reverse a revolution that was all but completed, the evacuation of 35,000 American citizens from a country in turmoil, and the destructive seizure of the embassy compound in February 1979, a full nine months before the taking of the hostages.
The policy recommendations that Sullivan made to Washington during the Iranian crisis were rejected by President Carter and Zbigniew Brzezinski in favor of policies that seemed, then as now, unrealistic. This account is valuable not only as a record of recent history, but as an example of how United States national interests can be damaged by the absence of clear, informed leadership in the White House.
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Mission to Iran
Published by
W W Norton & Co Inc, New York/London, 1981
ISBN 10: 0393015165
ISBN 13: 9780393015164
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First Edition
Seller: BookEnds Bookstore & Curiosities, Ojai, CA, U.S.A.
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Hardcover. Condition: Good +. Dust Jacket Condition: Good. 1st Edition. Hardcover red boards with beige spine and red lettering. Includes b/w illustrations and Index, 296 pages. The exception to the condition is a stain on the top of the front board. The DJ is in Good (-) condition with the exception of taped repairs to closed tears on the front/rear wrappers, chipping to top edges and a inventory sticker on the rear. Seller Inventory # 010655
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Mission to Iran
Seller: Books From California, Simi Valley, CA, U.S.A.
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hardcover. Condition: Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Includes dust jacket. General shelf wear to cover/spine/binding. Pages are clean. Good reading copy. Dust jacket has minor chipping,creasing,tearing. Seller Inventory # mon0004024946
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Mission to Iran
Published by
W.W. Norton & Company, New York City, NY U.S.A., 1981
ISBN 10: 0393015165
ISBN 13: 9780393015164
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Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: Porter and Frye, Amherst, NH, U.S.A.
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Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Good. First Edition. red binding, white wrapper around spine, , red lettering on spine, the story of the problem that the USA had with Iran in 1977-1979 that the author who had just been made ambassador for the USA to Iran located in Tehran, the top leader, Shah Reza Pahlavis, was hated by Ayatollah Khomeini, the Leader of Shi'a Islam in Iran who was planning to take control of Iran while the Shah and his wife were fisiting with the new USA President Carter, and had Americans in Iran put in jail, the book tells the ambassador's story of this crisis and it's outcome, 284 pages plus a postscript and index. Seller Inventory # 008253
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Mission to Iran
Published by
Norton, New York, 1981
ISBN 10: 0393015165
ISBN 13: 9780393015164
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Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: Ground Zero Books, Ltd., Silver Spring, MD, U.S.A.
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Hardcover. Condition: very good, Dust Jacket Condition: very good. First Edition. First Printing. 22 cm, 296 pages. illus., map, index, slight wear, soiling, & sticker residue to DJ, pencil erasure on front endpaper. William Healy Sullivan (October 12, 1922 - October 11, 2013) was an American Foreign Service career officer who served as Ambassador to Laos from 1964-1969, the Philippines from 1973-1977, and Iran from 1977-1979. An account of the events, the personalities, and the institutions in Iran as seen through the eyes of the last American ambassador to Iran during the revolution of 1978-1979. Sullivan served as U.S. Ambassador to Iran, arriving just before President Jimmy Carter's visit to the Shah of Iran in December 1977. In the 1970s, America had extremely close military and economic links with Iran. However, in early 1978, growing unrest due to inflation and other economic hardships fueled by the growing tide of fundamentalist Islam led to demonstrations against the Shah. During the next year, however, as the domestic situation in Iran was rapidly unraveling, Washington had few instructions for the Embassy in Iran. In late 1978, Sullivan cabled Washington that it might be necessary to consider policy options if the military proved unable to assure the shah's continuance in power and the shah should depart from Iran. In January 1979, the White House instructed Sullivan to inform the shah that the U.S. government felt he should leave the country.On February 1, 1979, the exiled Ayatollah Khomeini returned to Tehran.On February 14, 1979, the US Embassy in Teheran was overrun by several different armed groups. The Embassy staff was briefly taken hostage, but later released to the caretaker Iranian government.[16]He wrote in his autobiography: "I had recommended that we accept the fact that a revolution was in progress and seek to use our not inconsiderable influence to steer its success toward its more moderate protagonists." This view, however, was not shared by Washington.On April 1, 1979, Iran officially became an Islamic Republic.After Sullivan left Iran, the Embassy drew down to a skeleton staff, under the direction of Chargé d'Affaires Bruce Laingen, who later became one of 52 Americans held hostage by militant Iranian students. He headed the American Assembly at Columbia University, which had been briefly headed by General Dwight Eisenhower before he was elected President, from 1979 to 1986. In 1981, Sullivan published Mission to Iran, a memoir of his time as ambassador. His autobiography, Obbligato: Notes on a Foreign Service Career, was published in 1984. Seller Inventory # 37687
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MISSION TO IRAN
Published by
W. W. Norton & Co, New York, 1981
ISBN 10: 0393015165
ISBN 13: 9780393015164
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First Edition
Seller: Rare Book Cellar, Pomona, NY, U.S.A.
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Hardcover. First Edition; First Printing. Very Good+ in a Very Good+ price clipped dust jacket. Both front flap corners clipped. Light foxing along text block edges. ; 145 X 28 X 215 millimeters; 296 pages. Seller Inventory # 176023
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Mission to Iran
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hardcover. Condition: Good. Our good condition books are generally good for reading but not for gifting or collecting. They could have imperfections such as creasing, fanning, inscriptions, margin notes, yellowing, staining on edge or cover or pages, bumps, scuffs, etc etc (sometimes multiple of these). It's a wide category that encompasses anything that isn't almost-new down to anything that is slightly better than poor. We would NOT recommend gifting Good books - these should be considered reading copies. Our books are dispatched from a Yorkshire former cotton mill. We list via barcode/ISBN so please note that the images are stock images and may not be the exact copy you receive, furthermore the details about edition and year might not be accurate as many publishers reuse the same ISBN for multiple editions and as we simply scan a barcode or enter an ISBN we do not check the validity of the edition data when listing. If you're looking for an exact edition please don't order (at least not without checking with us first, although we don't always have time to check). We aim to dispatch prompty, the service used will depend on order value and book size. We can ship to most countries, see our shipping policies. Payment is via Abe only. Seller Inventory # P-BDO00046-RAG-20231124-G
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Mission to Iran
Published by
W W Norton & Co Inc, 1981
ISBN 10: 0393015165
ISBN 13: 9780393015164
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: ALEXANDER POPE, Kent, CT, U.S.A.
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Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good. photographs (illustrator). 1st Edition. Stated First Edition; 1st Printing ".in early 1978, growing unrest due to inflation and other economic hardships fueled by the growing tide of fundamentalist Islam led to demonstrations against the Shah. During the next year, however, as the domestic situation in Iran was rapidly unraveling, Washington had few instructions for the Embassy in Iran. In late 1978, Sullivan cabled Washington that it might be necessary to consider policy options if the military proved unable to assure the shah's continuance in power and the shah should depart from Iran. In January 1979, the White House instructed Sullivan to inform the shah that the U.S. government felt he should leave the country.On February 1, 1979, the exiled Ayatollah Khomeini returned to Tehran.On February 14, 1979, the US Embassy in Teheran was overrun by several different armed groups. The Embassy staff was briefly taken hostage, but later released to the caretaker Iranian government.". Seller Inventory # 950
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Mission to Iran
Published by
W W Norton & Co Inc, New York, NY, 1981
ISBN 10: 0393015165
ISBN 13: 9780393015164
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Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: True Oak Books, Highland, NY, U.S.A.
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Hardcover. Condition: Very Good-. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good-. First Edition; First Printing. 296 pages; Due to a printing mistake, about 20 pages are upside down. Book has no other noteworthy defects. Light rubbing and fading to the back of DJ. Bookstore sticker on FFEP. Very Good condition otherwise. No other noteworthy defects. No markings on text pages. ; - Your satisfaction is our priority. We offer free returns and respond promptly to all inquiries. Your item will be carefully cushioned in bubble wrap and securely boxed. All orders ship on the same or next business day. Buy with confidence. Seller Inventory # HVD-52082-A-0
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Mission to Iran
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hardcover. Condition: As New. Seller Inventory # 0393015165-VB