The Persian Empire Reborn
“Today, Iran has become an empire again, as it was throughout history. Its capital is Baghdad,
the center of our culture and identity as in the past. The geography of
Iran and Iraq is indivisible, just as our culture is indivisible. All of the Middle East is Iranian and its people are part of Iran. We intend to form an Iranian Union in this region.”
(Rudaw News)
- Iran is once again an empire whose influence extends to Iraq and
beyond, a top Iranian presidential advisor said Sunday, days after Saudi
Arabia expressed alarm that “Iran is taking over Iraq."
”
“At the
moment Iraq is not only the bastion of our civilization, it is also our
identity, culture and capital and this is true now as in the past,” Ali
Younesi, an advisor to the Iranian president said at a forum on Iran’s
ethnic identifies.
.
“The geography of Iran and Iraq cannot be divided,” said Younesi, a former intelligence minister, speaking at a Tehran forum titled “Iran: nationality, history and heritage."
”
“All of
the Middle East is Iranian,” Younesi declared, warning that no one had
the right to oppose Iran’s influence in the region.
.
He said
that people now living in neighboring countries are also Iranian
“because their countries were separated from the empire east and west."
”
“Protecting
our security and historical national identity would not be possible
unless we look at our influence in the region,” the ISNA news agency
quoted Younesi as saying.
.
Iran “does not eye beyond its borders but a natural unification in the region is on the table right now,” he declared.
.
“I do
not mean that we should once again conquer the world, I mean that we
have to remain vigilant and know where we stand,” he said. “We have to
think globally but act Iranian."
”
Younesi
said that, as Iranian forces back the Iraqi army in its war with
Islamic State (ISIS), “our historical rivals are upset and they help our
enemies to spite us."
”
In a clear jibe at archrivals Saudi Arabia and Turkey, Younesi said Tehran’s military involvement in the region is to “protect the Iranian people against the Wahabis and Ottoman rule.”
II
Iranian influence has grown tremendously in Iraq and beyond since the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq upset the regional balance.
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