Profiteering on the Iran-Iraq war
The military gear delivered from the US in the Iran-contra affair represents only a minor portion of arms sales to the combatants in the Iraq-Iran war. That war has now lasted more than six years and has deeply influenced the international arms market. Occurring during a period when other demand for arms has been relatively low, the war has nourished new suppliers and has revived both the legal and illegal private arms market. The erratic behavior of the USSR and the US, until recently by far the most important arms suppliers to the Third World, has pushed Iran and Iraq toward more commercially oriented sources, including many in the Third World. Both countries have had ample supplies of weapons during the war, and these weapons have served their purpose. Mainly because of its duration, the war already ranks third among post-World War II wars - after the Vietnam war and the Biafra war - in battlefield victims, with 300,000-500,000 casualties. The economic cost has risen to nearly $500 billion in weapons, destruction, and lost income. While it is hard to see anything but losers on the battlefield, the arms traffickers are profiting. Total Iranian arms imports since August 1980 have been higher than $10 billion, while Iraq has imported more than $30 billion worth. It is difficult to know whether making arms more difficult to obtain would have stopped the war, but judging from other recent wars, such as those between India and Pakistan, between Uganda and Tanzania, and in the Middle East, it seems likely that hostilities could have been stopped long ago. 12 references.
- OSTI ID:
- 6395096
- Journal Information:
- Bull. At. Sci.; (United States), Vol. 43:5
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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