| ID | 184970 |
| Title Proper | Shi'a principles and Iran's strategic culture towards ballistic missile deployment |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Mohammad Eslami, Alena Vysotskaya Guedes Vieira ; Eslami, Mohammad ; Vysotskaya, Alena ; Vieira, Guedes |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | Iran's January 2020 missile attacks on US military bases in Iraq following the assassination of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps General Qasem Soleimani correspond to a stark change of Iran's approach. Iran has namely abstained from using its ballistic missile program (BMP), which was only used twice after the 1980–88 Iran–Iraq War: in 2017 and 2018, in both instances in retaliation against ISIS attacks. The article explores the change in Iran's employment of its BMP from a strategic culture perspective while paying special attention to the principles of Shi'a Islam, which form a particular discursive habitat in which Iran's strategic actions are framed and rationalized. Iran's approach to the BMP is thus inseparable from qisas (retaliation), while obeying the overarching principle of maslahat; but also characterized by the varying importance of the the principles zarare aghall, ezterar and nafye sabil. We conclude that a perspective focusing on religious principles can contribute to our understanding of strategic cultural change, in what concerns its possible orientation, range and limits. |
| `In' analytical Note | International Affairs Vol. 98, No.2; Mar 2022: p.675–688 |
| Journal Source | International Affairs Vol: 98 No 2 |
| Key Words | Ballistic Missile Deployment ; Shi'a Principles ; Iran's Strategic Culture ; US Military Bases |