The cold war took a turn for the worse yesterday with Premier Mossadegh’s decision to break off diplomatic relations with Great Britain. The action was indeed “most unfortunate,” as the Associated Press anonymously quoted some Washington official as saying. The fact seems to be that blundering sterling and dollar diplomacy is driving Iran into the waiting arms of Soviet Russia. How diplomacy could have kept from blundering, under the circumstances, “is not readily apparent.”

Premier Mossadegh has been an adamant bargainer, backed by intense nationalism and abject poverty among the Iranian people. Britain, which nationalized its own oil industry, stiffly opposed Iran’s doing the same thing (which raises the thought that moving industry into the sphere of government may make common-sense settlement even more difficult; private oil firms could have reached an agreement with Iran on royalties, or pulled up stakes, without creating an international incident).

And finally, the United States, in its concern with the Communist threat, can hardly be thought to have improved the Iranian dispute by joining forces with Britain and offering Mossadegh a bribe if he would come to terms with the British. Some high-handed tactics have been employed all around. Although Britain no doubt had been less than generous with Iran on royalties in the past, Mossadegh was somewhat of a holdup man in demanding $56,000,000 from Britain before he would even talk over the oil dispute details. [As a sign of goodwill, Mossadegh wanted the former AIOC to release £20 million of the £49 million ($137.2 million) which it owed Iran for withheld loyalties and back taxes, with the balance to be paid at the end of negotiations.]

On the other side, there has been some intimidation applied by Britain and the United States which control most of the world’s oil tankers in blocking Iran’s efforts to sell oil elsewhere. By such methods, settlement has been made more difficult. And looming large over this failure is the implication of Iran in the struggle between Communism and anti-Communism.

Russia greatly needs oil. Its historic Baku oil fields apparently are beginning to run out, for Russia now is developing expensive underwater wells in the Caspian sea. Russia would like very much to get its hands on the vast oil resources of Iran. Mossadegh knows this. He also must know the history of Baku, whose people Moslems closely related to his own Iranians are now Soviet subjects because they were victims of Russian conquest. He can see how Russia has exploited Baku; he should be able to see that Iran could expect no better treatment.

The free world, concerned lest Iran also fall into the Soviet empire of Communism, has reason to seek a better way for solution of the Iranian crisis. Faced with failure under present methods, the disputants might reasonably consider bringing the dispute before the United Nations. [Been there, done that!] The UN was able to drive the reluctant Russians out of Iran after the war. Maybe it could keep them out now.

Certainly it is important to all free nations that some way be found to keep Communism from extending its hold over more millions of people and more war-potential material resources. Also certainly a more enlightened diplomacy is required than has been displayed so far by all parties to the dispute, including the United States.