“Iran and the United States are waging battle over the future of the Middle East. This, according to Mohsen Rezaei, the man who was the Chief Commander of the Revolutionary Guard, a candidate for president in the previous Iranian elections and is likely to run in the upcoming elections which are set to take place in June 2013. Rezaei, who was quoted in Iran’s Mehr news agency, gave an extensive strategic explanation: “Syria, Iraq, Iran and Afghanistan constitute a golden belt in the Middle East. The United States seeks to use all means to become the decision-maker in this golden belt.

Should Syria remain independent, and not fall to the hands of the Americans and the Western occupiers, there will be an Islamic awakening in the region which will turn toward Islam. But should these countries fall into the hands of the Americans, the Islamic awakening will turn into an American movement.
In using the phrase “Islamic awakening,” Rezaei was referring to the “Arab Spring,” a term that Iran rejects, as it presents the Arab revolutions as a democratic awakening, rather than Islamic ones. The Arab nature of the Syrian uprising does not allow Iran to stake its claim as an Islamic one.

Rezaei’s statements are the first public expression regarding Iran’s strategy, not only in regards to the significance of the struggle over Syria, but also and especially over its image as a regional superpower that must contend with the United States over Middle Eastern hegemony. If until now Iran has stuck with its public stance, according to which it is not directly involved in the Syrian conflict and at most it supports the Assad regime, Rezaei’s statement comes in order to clarify Iran’s position over the Syria question does not depend on any personal commitment to Bashar Assad. Syria’s significance, in the eyes of Iran, is much greater, and like Russia, it sees the control and influence over Syria as part of a global struggle.”

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