Aspire to transform old country (6)
I believe the answer is:
persia
'old country' is the definition.
(historical term for Iran)
'aspire to transform' is the wordplay.
'to transform' indicates anagramming the letters.
'aspire' with letters rearranged gives 'PERSIA'.
(Other definitions for persia that I've seen before include "It's now known as Iran" , "Praise be to ancient Iran" , "Old name for country at 25 Across" , "Old land" , "Aspire to this old country" .)