Meeting of two dictators, Ali Khamenei and Nicolae Ceausescu in Romania

Another unspoken, yet deeply understood, topic would be the art of internal control and the suppression of dissent. While neither leader would explicitly counsel the other on methods of repression, their shared experience of maintaining power through fear, surveillance, and the meticulous crushing of opposition would create a macabre understanding. Ceaușescu's Securitate and Khamenei's Revolutionary Guard (Pasdaran) were distinct in their origins and ideologies, but united in their function: to ensure the absolute dominance of the state and its leader. A knowing glance, a shared silence, or a subtle nod might convey volumes about the realities of their iron rule, a bond forged in the shared experience of absolute authority.