James G
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Post by James G on Jul 5, 2019 8:36:14 GMT
In what way could the war between the two countries be resolved before 1988?
Does one side have to emerge the winner or could it still end inconclusive but earlier?
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lordroel
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Post by lordroel on Jul 5, 2019 8:55:15 GMT
In what way could the war between the two countries be resolved before 1988? Does one side have to emerge the winner or could it still end inconclusive but earlier? Either Iran ore Iraq gets so war wary that there is a regime change and it ask for peace. |
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stevep
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Post by stevep on Jul 5, 2019 9:15:52 GMT
In what way could the war between the two countries be resolved before 1988? Does one side have to emerge the winner or could it still end inconclusive but earlier? Either Iran ore Iraq gets so war wary that there is a regime change and it ask for peace.
Unfortunately both sides were ruled by ruthless dictatorships that didn't particularly give a damn about what 'their' people wanted. True the mullahs in Iran were still somewhat unsteady in power when the war started but the attack by Saddam helped cement their control.
Possibly if Iraq was a lot more fragile for some reason, or someone had managed a coup against Saddam a few months into the conflict when it started going again Iraq. However the former seems unlikely as too many people in both the rest of the Arab world and the west were determined that Iran wouldn't win. [Although it could be said it has now.] The latter scenario might work but would Khomeini have accepted a balanced peace until he was forced to? [If you remember his statement that making peace with Iraq was like drinking poison, despite the fact the last few years had seen increasingly futile attacks by Iran with appalling losses. That could have been because the peace was with Saddam but I get the feeling given his bloated ego it was more his desires had been thwarted. ]
I don't really see the basis for a quick defeat of Iran given the limitations of the Iraqi forces and the size of Iran plus the traditional differences between the two cultures. At least unless say one of the super-powers had gone it against it and then yes it could be overrun, presuming the other did nothing, but it would be a pig of a job holding the country down.
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