Iran Petroleum Nationalization Anniversary

Iran Petroleum Nationalization Anniversary

Esfand 29Under the leadership of Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh, Iran claimed control of its lucrative oil industry by passing a nationalization law on March 15, 1951. Western countries responded two years later by backing favored leader Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi in his successful overthrow of Mossadegh. These events further stirred animosity in Iran against Western countries and fed the nationalist sentiment surrounding the observance of this special anniversary.
Celebrations of this event, also known as the National Day of Oil, take place in Iran and in Iranian communities abroad. Past activities have included television shows paying tribute to the 1951 legislation and conferences that focus on oil nationalization as well as Iran's present-day foreign policy.
Because the Iranian calendar differs slightly from the Gregorian calendar, the present-day commemoration falls a few days after March 15.
CONTACTS:
Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Imam Khomeini Sq.
Tehran, Iran
SOURCES:
AnnivHol-2000, p. 47