ndon Johnson and the Shah. Little of substance is contained in this brief report, which primarily recounts an exchange of routine diplomatic niceties. The two governments had recently exchanged letters calling for a program of scientific co operation. On a topic which would dominate much of the next decade,
The Shahanshah reaffirmed Iran's determination
to sustain an adequate modern defense force to ensure
Iran's national security, and the President expressed
the desire of the United States to continue cooperating
(July 1, 1968: 15)
In December, 1968, the Shah's prime minister Hoveida ("Hoveyda" in the text) visited Washington, and exchanged diplomatic toasts with President Johnson, then in his waning days in office. A portion of Johnson's toast illustrates the official U.S. interpretation of the Shah's domestic policies:
Together, government and the people in a
partnership for progress can do things that neither
Your Government has learned this, too, Mr.
Prime Minister. The leaders of Iran deserve
praise for their wisdom in attracting individual
citizens to the cause of a great nation. How they
are doing this is one of the truly exciting stories
of our time. Imagine these scenes:
Several thousand Literacy Corpsmen leave
their training centers and go by train and then by
bus and then perhaps by horse into distant villages
in order to teach. A shepherd boy learns to read and write
and to help his parents, who cannot read, in ways
an older generation never dreamed possible. That
boy's father now owns the land that he tills.
Imagine, too, Councils of Justice meeting
in the towns and villages, helping to create bonds
between the governed and those who govern....
...