The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was initially established as a paramilitary force to safeguard the doctrine of the Supreme Leader. However, its primary function quickly evolved into something far more insidious: the exportation of Khomeinist fundamentalism under the guise of revolution. Over the decades, the IRGC has transformed into Iran’s most powerful political, military, and economic entity, a shadow state operating beyond the reach of any governmental institution. Its economic stranglehold extends into oil, construction, telecommunications, and, most lucratively, illicit smuggling operations. While the regime’s presidents, regardless of faction, have occasionally dared to challenge the IRGC’s dominance, to safeguard their own fate and interests, every such attempt has ended in failure. The IRGC’s economic empire is not just a source of corruption; it is the primary mechanism that has gutted Iran’s formal economy while enriching a military elite loyal only to the Supreme Leader.
Despite his history of demonstrating loyalty to the regime’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, President Masoud Pezeshkian recently made a statement that, for the first time in his political career, directly challenged the deep-seated economic corruption of the IRGC.
On March 8, 2025, Pezeshkian, who was trying to dodge responsibility for his economic failures, acknowledged the staggering scale of fuel smuggling in Iran, stating, “Twenty million liters of diesel are being smuggled every single day. Such a volume cannot be transported manually or in small barrels; this requires a vast logistical network, and this must be stopped.” This was not just an acknowledgment of Iran’s smuggling crisis—it was an implicit, albeit cautious, attack on the IRGC, the very entity controlling the illegal trade. However, even in this statement, Pezeshkian stopped short of naming the perpetrators, illustrating the untouchability of the IRGC.
A Pattern of Presidential Defeat
Pezeshkian is not the first president to allude to IRGC corruption without daring to name it outright. His predecessors, despite their differences, all encountered the same immovable obstacle: a military-economic empire answerable only to Khamenei. Each confrontation with the IRGC contributed significantly to its political downfall, whether through political marginalization, economic sabotage, or outright removal.
Hassan Rouhani repeatedly alluded to the IRGC’s involvement in smuggling and economic corruption but avoided directly confronting them. On June 22, 2017, he criticized the increasing militarization of Iran’s economy, stating, “The privatization policy was meant to give the economy to the people and withdraw the government from economic activities. But what did we do? A part of the economy that was in the hands of an unarmed government was handed over to an armed government. This is not privatization.” He further lamented, “They feared the unarmed government—let alone an economy now controlled by a government that has guns, media, and everything else. No one dares compete with them.”
Despite these complaints, Rouhani failed to curtail the IRGC’s control over the economy. His presidency, like those before him, saw the IRGC only strengthen its grip on Iran’s financial resources, deepening the military’s economic stranglehold over the country.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, despite initially enjoying support from the IRGC, found himself at odds with them in his second term. In 2011, he famously referred to them as “our dear smuggler brothers”, a sarcastic yet pointed critique of their control over illicit trade. His attempt to limit their influence contributed to his eventual political exile.
Even Pezeshkian’s own finance minister, Abdolnaser Hemmati, struggled to point the finger at the IRGC during his impeachment hearing on March 2, 2025. As he was being politically dismantled, he made a desperate, thinly veiled accusation: “As the Minister of Economy, I cannot stop smuggling because… who controls the ports?” The answer, of course, was clear—IRGC-controlled illicit trade routes had rendered the official economy irrelevant.
The IRGC’s Economic Empire: The Engine of Iran’s Destruction
The IRGC’s control over Iran’s economy is no secret, yet it remains entirely immune to oversight. Over the years, the IRGC has turned state resources into private assets, weaponizing Iran’s economic crisis to sustain its own wealth and power.
The IRGC controls at least 60 unauthorized ports, a fact that was first acknowledged in 2011 by conservative lawmaker Ahmad Tavakoli. These ports allow them to smuggle fuel, drugs, and luxury goods without government supervision. Fuel smuggling alone generates at least $10 billion annually, draining the country’s resources while filling the pockets of IRGC commanders.
Through its economic arm, Khatam al-Anbiya Construction Headquarters, the IRGC dominates oil, gas, construction, and telecommunications, systematically eliminating private competition. Contracts worth billions are awarded to IRGC-linked companies without any transparency, further gutting Iran’s formal economy.
Whenever needed, the IRGC deliberately worsens economic conditions through artificial shortages, market manipulation, and security crackdowns. The IRGC benefits from sanctions, using its black-market networks to profit while ordinary Iranians suffer under economic restrictions.
Iran’s economy is in freefall, yet the IRGC continues to funnel billions into Hezbollah, Houthis, and other regional proxy forces. Despite fuel shortages at home, Iranian fuel is being smuggled to fund paramilitary operations abroad.
While the people of Iran suffer from gas and energy shortages, the IRGC smuggles fuel to neighboring countries, exacerbating the crisis. At the same time, they operate large-scale cryptocurrency mining farms, burdening the national energy grid. These mining farms consume massive amounts of electricity to generate digital currencies, allowing the IRGC to circumvent sanctions. This has led to nationwide blackouts in the height of summer and the coldest days of winter, leaving ordinary citizens without power while the IRGC profits off their misery.
Confronting the IRGC’s Global Reach
The IRGC’s economic empire is not just a domestic crisis—it is an international security threat. The United States and Canada have already designated the IRGC as a terrorist organization, but other nations, including the UK and the EU, have failed to take decisive action. This failure weakens international sanctions regimes and allows the IRGC to continue its global smuggling and terrorism network unimpeded.
The world must recognize that the IRGC is not merely a corrupt military force; it is a criminal syndicate that has hijacked an entire nation’s economy. Western governments must move beyond half-measures and designate the IRGC in its entirety as a terrorist organization. Furthermore, they must acknowledge the right of the Iranian people to resist. The IRGC’s financial empire must be dismantled, and its leadership must be treated as legitimate targets for those fighting to reclaim Iran’s economy and future. Until then, the IRGC will remain the ultimate barrier to any meaningful change in Iran.
Source » ncr-iran