The Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s - Essay Example The war, however, was frustrating for both parties, with a victory that was decisive eluding them both. Various factors relating to the regime changes in both countries led to a full-blown war between Iraq and Iran, and a proxy war between Iran & the US. The premise of this paper is to analyze this war and the role the US had to play in it. 2. Iraqi army and Iran troops In 1979, Saddam Hussein, a Sunni Muslim, took over power in Iraq, and set out to make Iraq the leading state in the Middle East (Kilborn 79). While Saddam and most of his supporters were Sunnis, the majority of Iraqi’s were Shia’s. Saddam did not trust them. Iran a neighbour to the east was predominantly Shia. In 1979, the Iranians, led by Ayatollah Khomeini, also overthrew their government, which had been under the Shah, a treasured ally of the US and Israel, and this led to an enmity brewing between these two entities. The revolution in Iran also marked the first time that clerics of Islam had harnesse d the authority of religion to overthrow a modern and secular state with a theocracy (Jacek 39). 3. Saddam Hussein’s personality The most potent catalyst for the Iraq-Iran war was Saddam Hussein’s personality. Repeatedly, he aggressed against the Iranians, and it was only a matter of time before war broke out. A number of reasons were to nudge Saddam into starting a war. These were longstanding issues like access to the gulf of Persia by the Iraqi’s, & a few recent ones like the mistrust that the Iraqi’s felt towards the Iranians and their new government (Phythian 71). The Iraqi has historically claimed the oil rich province of Khuzestan, which had a large Arab population of non-Persian population, with historical ties to Iraq. A few small islands in the gulf of Persia, which were militarily occupied by Iran, were also laid claim to by Iraq. There was also the Shatt al-Arab waterway, which was disputed by both countries. 4. Diplomatic ties between Iraq an d Iran Tensions between Tehran and Baghdad heightened in 1980. A group sponsored by the Iranians attempted to assassinate the foreign minister of Iraq, while Iraq captured and hanged Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr, the grand Ayatollah, and a staunch, public defender of the Islamic Revolution (Phythian 79). Diplomatic ties were cut, with minor skirmishes along the border. Iraq, in September, declared Shatt al-Arab waterway as their territory, before invading Iran on the 22nd. The invading Iraqi’s were remarkably successful at first, managing to gain large swathes of territory, including Khuzestan. However, their march began to lose steam, due in large part to the ferocity with which the Iranian public responded, and the bravery of the Air Force of Iran. In January of 1981, the Iranians mounted a counteroffensive, which was unsuccessful & led to a stalemate period (Kilborn 91). 5. United States’ Contributions During the war, both countries attacked oil tankers bound for each oth er’s nation, in an attempt to cripple their foreign exchange sources. As the stalemate dragged on, neutral vessels were attacked with increasing regularity in the middle 1980s. This was especially a paramount concern for Western oil importing countries. After Iranians attacked Kuwait’s vessels, the United States’ president, Ronald Regan, gave the green light for Kuwaiti vessels to fly under the US flag, placing them under the patronage of the US, and giving the US the right to strike back if these ships were attacked

Career Planning assignment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Career Planning assignment - Essay Example From here, one gets to the final stage of career planning which is designing their professional development plan. At this stage, an individual states the improvements they need to make in order to qualify for the requirements which are supposed to take them up towards their career goal (Fuller 2011, p. 410). The following text is my elaborated career plan as I aim at owning a top-of-the-range lingerie selling store in the U.K. I have always aspired to go into self-employment as opposed to being employed by anyone else. Specifically, I have always promised myself that I would start and run an executive lingerie selling store in the United Kingdom. This career appeals to me because I have a good taste of fashion, and I am sure what I will have to offer will be irresistible. Additionally, I am good at convincing people, and this is a good sign that I will always attract clients. Commercial skills to enable them to plan promotions, pricing, and product presentation, to achieve budget forecasts and targets, to devise the best store layout, and to advise retail managers on matters such as competition and marketing initiatives. Lingerie business also requires high standards so that compliance with procedures and policies is observed, excellence in customer service is instilled, and finally safety, repairs, and housekeeping is maintained. Presently, the skills I possess are aligned towards my career, but they are inadequate. First, I have people management and financial management skills that I have acquired from my major. These are however not sufficient in the event that I had to apply for such a lingerie store management job. The skills I have in commercial management are only on product pricing, presentation and promotion. However, the career demands that I should be able to achieve budget forecasts and targets. Additionally, my communication skills which I am quite satisfied with still need to be sharpened so that I