The country was politically dependent before the Revolution. That is to say, the government - both Mohammad Reza Shah and different governmental organizations - obeyed the U.S. They were just waiting for America to make a move. Again, there is overwhelming evidence in this regard. Dr. Amini traveled from Iran to America in order to convince the Americans to let him be the prime minister of Iran. When he came back, he became prime minister! After a couple of years, the Shah - who was opposed to Dr. Amini - made a trip to America and convinced the Americans to remove him. The Shah came back and removed him! This was the situation in our country. In order to install a prime minister, the Shah who was the head of the country needed the agreement and approval of America. In the case of many issues, the Shah used to invite the American and English ambassadors to his palace in order to discuss his decision with them. If they did not agree, the decision was not implemented. This is what political dependence means. They obeyed America, and before America they obeyed England. It was the English who brought Reza Khan to power. When they realized that he was no longer useful to them, they fired him. They forced him out of the country and put his son in power. This was our situation before the Revolution.
The Revolution came and brought full political independence for the country. That is to say, today in this vast world there is not even a single power among the superpowers which can claim its will has the slightest effect on the will of the government officials or the Iranian nation. In particular, this issue - namely, resistance, independence, political dignity - is the most attractive thing for nations. When you notice that nations feel respect for the Iranian nation, [you should pay attention to the fact that] a major portion of this respect is related to our political independence.
Imam Khamenei, Feb 5, 2011
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