of the Imam,
and the Islamic Coalition Association; opposition groups include the
Liberation Movement of Iran and the Nation of Iran party; armed
political groups that have been almost completely repressed by the
government include Mojahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK), People's
Fedayeen, Kurdish Democratic Party of Iran; the Society for the
Defense of Freedom

International organization participation: CCC, CP, ECO, ESCAP,
FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD,
IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM
(observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO,
UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO

Diplomatic representation in US: none; note - Iran has an
Interests Section in the Pakistani Embassy, headed by Faramarz
FATH-NEJAD; address: Iranian Interests Section, Pakistani Embassy,
2209 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007; telephone: [1] (202)
965-4990

US diplomatic representation: none; note - protecting power in
Iran is Switzerland

Flag: three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red;
the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah) in
red is centered in the white band; ALLAH AKBAR (God is Great) in
white Arabic script is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of
the green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band

Economy
-------

Economic overview: Iran's economy is a mixture of central
planning, state ownership of oil and other large enterprises,
village agriculture, and small-scale private trading and service
ventures. Over the past several years, the government has introduced
several measures to liberalize the economy and reduce government
intervention, but most of these changes have moved slowly or have
been reversed because of political opposition. Iran has faced
increasingly severe financial difficulties since mid-1992 due to an
import surge that began in 1989 and general financial mismanagement.
At yearend 1993 the Iranian Government estimated that it owed
foreign creditors about $30 billion; an estimated $8 billion of this
debt was in arrears. At yearend 1994, Iran rescheduled $12 billion
in debt. Earnings from oil exports - which provide 85% of Iran's
export revenues - are providing less relief to Iran than usual
because of reduced oil prices. Iran's financial situation will
remain tight in 1996 because th