Claim: Iran is a sovereign state that still has a significant influence.
Evidence: Iran -LRB- ɪ , also ɪ -RRB- , formerly known as Persia , is a sovereign state in Western Asia.
Growing dissent against foreign influence and political repression led to the 1979 Revolution and the establishment of an Islamic republic , a political system which combines elements of a parliamentary democracy with a theocracy governed by Islamic jurists under the concept of a `` Supreme Leadership ''.