So the US probably got handed off this hot potato because, if no western countries is doing it, China or Russia will come in and cause chaos later.
Is this a joke? Western imperialist states entering would create chaos, while China and/or Russia entering would be stabilizing. Iran, China, and Russia are major BRICS partners, and have shared regional security interests.
Who do you think organizes, funds, trains, and equips the various groups of Salafi jihadist terrorist groups that wreak havoc in Western and Central Asia? The United States, with some assistance from Israel and probably the UK. The US has wanted regime change in Iran ever since the puppet regime they installed in the US-orchestrated 1953 coup was overthrown in the 1978 revolution. The US has wanted to regain its imperialist control of Iran for the last 47 years.
Stories start being fed to the media about human rights abuses or just concerning developments (lack of democracy, dwindling economy, etc).
To help lay the basis, the government may make official reports the media can then use. They might also use humanitarian NGOs (Amnesty, HRW…) or outright CIA outfits (World Uyghur Congress, Radio Free Europe…).
Stories start coming out more and more often. The volume of coverage regarding the target country becomes much bigger than before the campaign.
At the same time, groups and individuals in the target country, that have been funded by the imperialist country, are being put in the spotlight. They have been groomed for years, laying somewhat dormant until it’s time to activate them.
Stories about these groups call them champions of democracy, freedom fighters, etc. A clear limit is drawn: they are good people, and the government that’s preventing them from achieving their policies are the bad guys. This is the basis of a color revolution.
Slowly, public opinion starts to shift. We don’t necessarily act on this opinion yet though, we plant the seeds to make later consent easier. Each seed makes the next one easier to plant and grow.
The imperialist country continues the campaign but also starts small, probing actions to see what it can get away with. It might enact sanctions or query the UN for intervention. It will also call these acts “moral” and underline that they are meant to sanction the country until it becomes a democracy again, further digging the good vs. evil line.
Meanwhile, everything the target country does to prove its innocence and lawful conduct is not published or gets blocked (e.g. request for a UN delegation visit). Their point of view is never printed in the media or if it is, only when they can spin it in a good way.
Slowly, regime change is brought up. Subconsciously at first (e.g. “China would be free if it wasn’t for the communist party”, which implies destroying it and the system it built). Later, it can be more overt (e.g. Iran).
Finally, consent has been manufactured and public opinion has completely shifted on the target country. People come to see invasion as the only solution, and they will happily support it once it happens. It may not happen for several years though, as material reasons might not make invasion possible. Sometimes, a color revolution (which is mostly carried by nationals of the country in question but funded and trained by the imperialist country) is the best thing we can do.
. If the operation succeeds:
If the operation succeeds, a pro-US dictator will be ‘elected’ or seize power. The election will be called fair and democratic, as was the case in Ukraine 2014. This president will be paraded around in the West and become a media figure that everyone comes to know. This is what happened to Zelensky, but also to Pinochet in his time and Juan Guaido.
Inside the country, everything gets privatized and sold to US and European companies under the directives of the dictator. This is rarely talked about or if it is, it’s presented as banal — e.g., “Ford to open factory in Argentina”. Quality of life plummets, actual humanitarian crises start, etc.
The media still publishes stories on the country, but always in a good light, and not as many as during the operation. They might sometimes call to unrest in the country but always as a distant, abstract phenomenon.
As long as the dictator plays by our rules, the country keeps being talked about positively. As soon as he starts to become too independent, we will use the chaotic post-coup situation to repeat the process with a new President.
I wouldn’t take that as a given.
Is this a joke? Western imperialist states entering would create chaos, while China and/or Russia entering would be stabilizing. Iran, China, and Russia are major BRICS partners, and have shared regional security interests.
Who do you think organizes, funds, trains, and equips the various groups of Salafi jihadist terrorist groups that wreak havoc in Western and Central Asia? The United States, with some assistance from Israel and probably the UK. The US has wanted regime change in Iran ever since the puppet regime they installed in the US-orchestrated 1953 coup was overthrown in the 1978 revolution. The US has wanted to regain its imperialist control of Iran for the last 47 years.
Edit to add a primer: The blueprint of regime change operations How regime change happens in the 21st century with your consent