alternative foreign policy views among the iranian policy elite

42 IRAN'S STRATEGIC INTENTIONSleadership of global Islam.W H A T THE FUTURE HOLDSIranian foreign policy will continue to be shaped by the beliefthat Iran has a central role in world affairs, a belief that has deeproots in Iranian culture and was a major tenet of the Shah'spolicies. Majlis Vice Speaker Hojatalislam Hassan Rowhanirecently articulated the basic assumption of many Iranians:"Whether wanted or not, the Islamic Republic of Iran isshouldering the leadership of many communities of the world.But Iran's leadership is different from America's domineeringleadership. ''32 This conception of Iran as a natural great powertranslates into an assumption that Iran's neighbors will certainlyunderstand that they have to work with Iran, if not acknowledgeIranian leadership. Reporting at Friday prayers in Tehran abouthis trip through Central Asia, President Rafsanjani took as naturalthat, 33Even those people who are not Muslims--because there arealso many non-Muslims living there---they, too, understandthat, because of natural circumstances, their happiness and theirinterest lies in cooperation with Iran, because that is the wayour region has operated.Because Iran expects to be the major power in the region, itwill continue to have genuine difficulty perceiving why others inthe area are touchy about Iranian assertion of what it sees as itsnatural rights. Iranians of many stripes are convinced that Iranhas gone far to accommodate its neighbors. For example, on theGulf islands, many Iranians think that the Shah was~ Keyhan Weekly (in English), January 13, 1994.33 Tehran Radio, November 5, 1993, as transcribed in FBIS-NESNovember 8, 1993.