Smutsiga händer? USA:s samarbete med Iran 1953-1979

Sammanfattning: The hypocrisy of democracy is to help autocratic rulers to stay in power because it benefits their own country. This thesis examines how the United States of America justified their cooperation with the Iranian Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi during the period of 1953-1979, until he was overthrown by his own people. This case-study doesn´t make general conclusions about the US foreign policy towards other countries except Iran. The theoretical starting point for the empirical analysis is the political dilemma of dirty hands. With the analytical instrument, constructed with a normative analysis about the concept of dirty hands, it´s possible to discover which ethical discipline the American presidents had to uphold to justify their actions. There are three different aspects of their cooperation which are lifted in this thesis. The first one is about the circumstances that made them begin their cooperation, the second regards the features of the cooperation. The last aspect is the fact that the presidents had to accept the Shah´s disrespect to the human rights so they could continue their collaboration. In conclusion if the presidents uphold a consequentialistic standpoint, they can morally justify their cooperation with an autocratic state, in this case Iran.