Britain's Position on Military and Logistical Arms Sales to Iraq during the First Year of the Iran-Iraq War 1980-1981

Abstract

The position of the British government on the Iraqi-Iranian war 1980-1988, especially at its beginning, was of particular importance in drawing the lines of its various relations with the Iraqi government, which at the beginning of the war was in a race against time to provide weapons, ammunition and military equipment from the major industrial countries and their companies in this area. In view of Britain adopting a neutral stance towards the war, this is difficult from the position of the two sides. The British military industrial establishment and its companies were not able to obtain the possible economic benefit from Iraqi offers nor obtain huge deals to buy British weapons. This made Iraqi Ministry of Defense officials press in the negotiations for the signing of many deals with the British military industrial establishment, whether with the British Ministry of Defense or with British non-governmental companies. Despite that, there were many deals that took place between the Iraqi Ministry of Defense and the British government and British companies, as the economic and political factors and pressure groups from within Britain had a major role in concluding many of the deals. Here it appears clearly how serious the British government is in adopting a policy of neutrality towards the war, especially as the economic factors controlled its decision. In addition, the Iraqi Ministry of Defense is largely credited with breaking many obstacles in order to benefit from high-quality British military products compared to their French and European counterparts in general.