America’s greatest asset has always been its people – a multinational tapestry forged by immigrants who brought skills, languages, and unyielding patriotism. In an era of complex international commitments – containing Iran’s nuclear ambitions, proxy networks, and threats to allies and global shipping – America should harness the unique advantages of first- and second-generation immigrants.
Specifically, the US can form specialized Army units with Farsi speakers, deep cultural knowledge, and personal stakes in Iran’s future that would outperform conventional forces in high-risk scenarios like operations targeting the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Basij in urban centers such as Tehran and Isfahan.
The US has roughly 500,000 to 750,000 Iranian-Americans as of recent estimates (2020 Census and Pew data around 568,000 write-ins and up to 750,000 in 2024). Many are highly educated, with strong ties to pre-1979 Iran and profound opposition to the clerical regime’s oppression.
This community offers native or near-native Farsi proficiency, cultural fluency, and familial knowledge of Iranian society – assets that are chronically scarce in the broader US military and intelligence apparatus.
The Pentagon and CIA have long struggled with critical language gaps. Post-9/11 reports highlighted severe shortages in Arabic, Dari, Pashtu, and Persian/Farsi, with incentives like signing bonuses failing to close the deficit quickly.
Members of the Iranian diaspora gather in front of the White House, part of a chain of events taking place in the US, Canada, and Europe in support of Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, calling for a free and democratic Iran, earlier this month. (credit: From Boston To Iran group)
Conventional units rely on contractors, limited school-trained linguists, or ad-hoc interpreters – creating friction, intelligence delays, and operational risks in dense, hostile urban environments. Immigrant-staffed units flip this: operators who can blend, read local signals, interrogate effectively, and build rapport with potential defectors or civilians.
History validates this approach. During World War II, Polish-Americans (population of roughly 5 million) contributed an estimated 900,000 to over 1 million service members – roughly 20% of their community and disproportionately high relative to their share of the US population.
They fought with exceptional drive to liberate Poland from Nazi occupation. Italian-Americans (over 1.5 million served) and others with ancestral ties showed similar motivation.
French-Americans and exiles also played roles in liberating France. These units and individuals combined American training and discipline with intimate knowledge of terrain, language, and local sentiment – turning personal heritage into combat effectiveness.
Iranian-Americans today mirror this. Many fled the 1979 Revolution or its aftermath. Their affection for the ancestral homeland – combined with American values of liberty – creates powerful motivation against a regime widely seen as oppressive. Polls and diaspora activism consistently show strong anti-regime sentiment.
Parachuting or inserting Farsi-speaking American units into Tehran or Isfahan would not feel like invading a foreign land to them; it would be closer to finishing the liberation their families began by emigrating. This psychological edge – patriotism plus personal stakes – produces higher morale, lower fratricide risks through better identification, and superior human intelligence (HUMINT).
The IRGC fields around 190,000 active personnel, with the Basij paramilitary adding roughly 90,000 active and hundreds of thousands of potential reservists/mobilizable forces (official claims run higher, but core operational strength is more modest). These forces are deeply embedded in Iranian society, using urban terrain, human shields, and ideological control.
Conventional US units excel in firepower and maneuver, but face challenges in:
– Distinguishing combatants from civilians.
– Navigating Farsi-only signage, communications, and social cues.
– Countering propaganda that paints Americans as invaders.
Specialized diaspora units mitigate this. Cultural insiders better exploit fractures – widespread discontent with the regime, economic woes, and protests – to encourage defections or non-resistance. They reduce collateral damage and civilian alienation, which are strategic disasters in winning over “hearts and minds” or regime-change scenarios.
Language skills enable real-time intelligence exploitation without delays. This aligns with successful historical models of ethnic recruitment and modern special operations’ emphasis on cultural preparation.
The US maintains enduring interests in the Middle East: preventing Iranian hegemony, securing energy routes, protecting Israel and Gulf partners, and countering nuclear proliferation. Maximum pressure campaigns, sanctions, and occasional direct actions underscore the need for credible options short of (or in support of) full conventional war.
Leveraging the Iranian diaspora is cost-effective, draws on America’s unique cosmopolitan strength, and projects values of freedom – exactly the narrative that undermines theocratic tyranny.
Skeptics may raise loyalty concerns or discrimination optics. These are answered by WWII precedents and the vetting, training, and oath all US service members undergo.
Iranian-Americans already serve honorably; scaling targeted units builds on that. Integration with broader forces ensures unity of command. Far from “dividing” the military, it enhances capability – as diversity in skills and perspectives has repeatedly done, from Buffalo Soldiers to today’s language programs.
America does not need to invent this concept – it is successfully woven into its military history. By creating Farsi-proficient, culturally attuned units from the Iranian-American community, America would honor their heritage while strengthening national security. These Americans can carry American freedoms to the streets of Tehran and Isfahan with the same elan their Polish- and French-American forebears showed in Paris and Amsterdam.
The regime in Iran represents powers of darkness and evil through repression, sponsorship of terrorism, and nuclear defiance. Harnessing the patriotism of Iranian-Americans will leverage America’s multicultural tapestry and turn immigrant communities into an unbeatable strategic advantage.
The writer is an independent political analyst based in Berlin. A graduate of Yale and Hebrew University, he can be reached at rafaelcastro78@gmail.com.