Unusual praise for the old country (6)
I believe the answer is:
persia
'old country' is the definition.
(historical term for Iran)
'unusual praise' is the wordplay.
'unusual' indicates an anagram.
'praise' with letters rearranged gives 'PERSIA'.
'for the' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for persia that I've seen before include "Old Iran" , "Old land" , "Former name of Iran" , "It's now known as Iran" , "Aspire to this old country" .)