Wednesday, December 7, 2022

Iran- Iraq war

 The war lasted 8 years  and the reasons for the war was difficult to understand for outsiders. Perhaps something can be learned for the  history, in the context of Russia-Ukraine war.  There is a nice Wikipedia page about the war.   Here is my list of observations.

1. When the war had started, Iran was a clear political enemy of the United States.  Iraq then became a temporary ally and was provided with weapons, logistics, etc to damage Iran.  Several other countries (including the Soviet Union) also helped. There is an interesting video footage on the Wikipedia page of Donald Rumsfeld and Saddam Hussain meeting each other, and negotiating (1983).

2. Both countries came out severely damaged after the war.  The damage was economical, political, humanitarian, cultural, religious,  both between the countries and within the countries.

3. Both countries claimed the victory in the war; Saddam Hussein definitely did. Yet it was  extremely damaging to the country (Iraq)  and may have led to its eventual demise.