The 1953 coup in Iran and the role of Great Britain in it

The article discusses the causes of the 1953 military coup in Iran and the role of Great Britain in it. In 1951 Prime Minister Mossadegh roused Britain’s ire when he nationalized the oil industry. Mossadegh argued that Iran should begin profiting from its vast oil reserves which had been exclusively controlled by the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. The company later became known as British Petroleum (BP). After considering military action, Britain opted for a coup. President Harry Truman rejected the idea, but when Dwight Eisenhower took over the White House, he ordered the CIA to embark on one of its first covert operations against a foreign government. In 1953, Iranian armed forces, with the help of the CIA and British intelligence, orchestrated a coup that toppled the democratically elected government of Iran.