mean money.
EXPORT amount to Rapier missiles, ana armourca ars Trade has riot for 'external' use.
concern over WO.CoUnTes.
JOINT rose 204 m period last year.
Many THERE are two reasons why Dr Death is so concerned to defend his friend the Shah.
The first is strategic military cars. interests. And military alliances Group British arms sales to Iran But something like £900m a year: Chieftain tanks, British Ley- intervention VICKCE tank recovery vehicles and so Recently the Department of granted export licences for large quantities of control equipment. So throne. much for the usual excuse that the military hardware is solely The second reason for British -TAT and the reason for the large arms sales - apart from the money the growing trade between the Exports from Britain to Iran from £502.3m in 1976 to year. Already after the first three quarters of 1978 the total stands at 168n might - 17 per cent up on the same companies prices. nave Jomt ventures with cod along the lines Chrysler's supply of Hunter Kits to be assembled as Peykan such arrangements include Hawker Siddely, British Leyland, Massey Ferguson, Foseco, London Brick Acrow and George Cohen 600 the crucial interest in Iran is oil — an issue which has provoked Western When a radical government was elected in the early 1950s, piedged to the nationalisation Anglo-Iranian Oil, CIA organised a coup to put the Shah back on the same British government concer over the Iranian oil workers strike is not, as they would have us believe, because they are worried about the possible los of British jobs. but because it Shan les: amenable than he has been to imperialist demands over oil The chief British participant of | in Iranian oil is our old friend British Petroleum of sanctionsbusting fame.
The government-controlled company has a 40 per cent stake in the Iranian Oil Participants consortium Recently BP has been negotiating with Tehran over a joint venture with the state, in which the company would develop non-oil industries in exchange for privileged access o Tanan ou Iran is BP's biggest source of As we pointed out last week, the probability is that much of that sanctions-busting oil which reached lan Smith started dictator: the Shah.
No wonder Owen searches around for "moral" reasons for the British role in Iran.
ACTION No wonder too that these companies who enthusiastically supported the Shah are now trying to curry favour his possible successors. * In InE article and the accompanying map we mention a number of British companies with Iranian interests. If your employer is among them get your union or shop stewards committee to investigate those interests and try to organise blacking action.
Socialist Challenge 16 November 1978 Page 3