West Chester University - Serpentine Yearbook (West Chester, PA)

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Iran In Chaos Worldwide instability was in- creased by the overthrow of Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi in Iran. For 37 years, the Shah ruled his country, taking it from backwardness to the beginnings of modernization complete with TV sets and cars. In the last two years, however, there had been riots, strikes, and protests calling for human rights and freedoms to go along with modernization. The Shah, unable to calm the demonstrators and put an end to paralyzing strikes, was forced into exile by supporters of Muslim leader Ayatollah Khomeini. Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlave Students chanting support for Khomeini. Khomeini, the man behind the revolution, stands for an Islamic republic. After returning from a 15-year exile in France imposed by the Shah, he appointed Nehdi Bazargan as prime minister of the new government. Iran ' s ability to cope and rebuild will depend on Khomeini ' s and Bazargen ' s ability to reconcile all of the major factions of this divided nation.

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INTERNATIONAL Chinese Vice Premier Teng Hsiao-p ' ing. n.S. Xiitionai Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski at China ' s Great Wall. Vietnamese soldiers with 130 mm. gun fire at Chinese positions. United States President Jimmy Carter. China ing the inevitable, was hailed by most but criticized by those who felt that the U.S. was turning its back on a long-time ally, Taiwan. The recogni- tion of the Peoples Republic not only opened the door to trade and diplomacy but also gave the Rus- sians another problem to think about. The beginning of formal diplomatic relations with China was not the only thing in the news from the Far East. China, the so called Paper Tiger , came to life in late February and March with its inva- sion of Vietnam. The invasion was in retaliation for Hanoi ' s rout of the pro-Peking regime in Cambodia, its expul- sion of ethnic Chinese, and a series of Sino- Vietnam bor- der clashes. The fighting continued for close to a month, with the Red Army penetrating up to 25 miles at some points. By the end of March, however, its message made clear, China withdrew. For over twenty-five years the United States had refused to recognize the government of the People ' s Republic of China. However, when Richard Nixon reopened the door to the mainland, the nation as well as the world knew that the tables were turning. On December 22, 1978 President Jimmy Carter, in his first real foreign policy victory, announced that formal relations with the Com- munists would begin the first of the year. This announcement, affirm-

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Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. President Jimmy Carter. Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin. The Mid East A new chapter in the Mid East drama unfolded this year when the Egyptian-Israeli peace pact was signed. After twenty-five years of terrorism and numerous wars be- tween these two countries, Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin signed, with the middleman help of Presi- dent Jimmy Carter, a Treaty that it is hoped will bring a lasting peace. There are many questions still un- answered, such as the Palastine question and the problem of the ad- verse reaction of many Arab coun- tries to the pact, but the first step towards peace has been suc- cessfully taken. Sadat and Begin embrace after signing the peace treaty.