Generals know, when it comes to invading another nation, size does matter. Both Napoleon and Hitler understood this argument after invading Russia. Sometimes even surprise and military strength may be insufficient to offset large distances, mountainous terrain, diverse climate and culture for a fighting army.
Fighting Topography
Like Arizona, Iran has tall mountains and great plateaus, making it one of the world’s most mountainous countries. At 637,000 square miles, she has 16% of the total land mass of the USA. Mount Damavand, an 18,500 foot tall dormant volcano, is 49% higher than Japan’s Mount Fuji.
Unlike Arizona, northern Iran consists of temperate rainforests near the Caspian Sea, while the south maintains vast deserts.
Iran verses Iraq
Some military strategist desire to link the invasion of Iraq to an invasion of Iran; however, similarities are few.
- Iraq’s topography – is quite homogeneous consisting mainly of deserts and flat river deltas (with few mountains in the Kurdish north.) Iran, on the other hand, is 3.7 times larger than Iraq with mountains stretching to Afghanistan and Venezuelan like forests touching the deserts and beaches.
- Militarily – Iraq’s terrain is relatively easy to navigate with modern technology; while Iran would present a difficult task. Columnist Seymour Hersh quoted senior military officials in the New Yorker magazine on July 10th 2006, “Iran’s geography would also complicate…war….This is not Iraq - which is fairly flat. Iran is akin to Afghanistan [with]… a lot of mature air-defense systems and networks….”
- Population – Iran has 2.5 times the population of Iraq at nearly 69 million people, but more importantly it is a far more diverse population than its smaller neighbor. According to the CIA World Fact Book on September 27, 2009, Iraq has only two major ethnic groups. 80% of the population is Arab and 15% is Kurd. Iran on the other hand has eight large ethnic groups ranging from Persians to Turkmen with no one group being the majority.
- Density – Similar to Iraq, Iran’s population is concentrated in cities. But unlike Iraq, Iran has far more cities dispersed over a much larger area that are ethnically different. Similar to its neighbor to the east (Afghanistan), Iran’s ethnic groups are scattered and form large pockets of tribal communities.
- The Iran-Iraq War – was a bloody stalemate that lasted eight years and ultimately unified many of Iran’s ethnic groups. In an Iran Chamber Society article “Iran Iraq War” the author argues, “Saddam Hussein…thought that the…Arabs would join the Iraqis….Instead, they joined Iran's regular and irregular armed forces….”
- The Persian Gulf – is considerably different in the region surrounding Iran than it is near Iraq. Iranian landmass covers nearly 50% of the Gulf coastline while Iraq has a mere 10 miles of waterfront. More importantly the vital waterway, the narrow and shallow Straits of Hormuz, is nearly surrounded by Iran. The mining of the Straits could set the stage for Western economies to enter a worldwide energy crisis.
The Macedonian General, Alexander the Great, was able to conquer this region in swift order. However, his campaign results are still regarded as one of the most unlikely outcomes in military history.* The American led invasion of Iran would be difficult and costly, but not necessarily impossible. Topography, size and cultural ethnicity could be overcome, but the West must remember former President George Bush’s belief that, “Iraqis would greet the…Americans with cheers and applause.” History has shown this was a gross military error.
* Warry, John, Alexander 334-323 BC: Conquest of the Persian Empire, Osprey Publishing 2000, pg 89
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