Whose proxy war? The competition among Iranian foreign policy elites in Iraq
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 5724113 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Christian Høj Hansen (Institute for Strategy and War Studies, the Royal Danish Defence College, Denmark), Troels Burchall Henningsen (0000-0001-8094-0550, Institute for Strategy and War Studies, the Royal Danish Defence College, Denmark, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2022 |
| Volume | 33 |
| Issue | 6 |
| Pages | 973-998 |
| Publication date | 2022-08-18 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Small Wars and Insurgencies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0959-2318 • E-ISSN: 1743-9558 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/09592318.2022.2064152 |
| OpenAlex | W4223650931 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 23 |
How do state sponsors of proxy groups in civil wars balance their support of non-state militias with the need for political transition towards stability? This article explores the inconsistencies in Iran’s priorities and proxy strategy that at times limited Iranian influence, and complicated Iraq’s transition from war to peace. It expands on current theories on proxy warfare by focusing on the impact of diverging interests among foreign policy elites in a sponsor state. Three policy dilemmas illustrate the difference among on the one side the Revolutionary Guard and on the other side the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Intelligence. First, whether the pro-Iranian proxies should maintain their influence after the war or Iran should strengthen its link to the representatives of the formal state. Second, whether repression by Shia militias or political reconciliation should prevent Sunni Arabs from (re)joining Islamic State. Third, whether Iraq should be part of a sectarian, transnational alliance or an inclusive state that might become an arbiter to deescalate regional tension. The study contributes to the literature on Iranian proxy warfare in the Middle East and proxy warfare literature in general, by considering the consequences of differences among foreign policy elites
Alliance · Foreign policy · Islam · Middle East · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · History · Law · Political Conflict and Governance · Politics and Conflicts in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Middle East · Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political Violence
Islam beyond Borders
The Forgotten Front
Presidential decisionmaking in foreign policy
Foreign Policy Analysis
Iran Rising
Foreign sponsorship of pro-government militias fighting Syria’s insurgency
The Defensive Dimension of Iran's Military Doctrine
Green martyrdom and the Iranian state
The client gets a vote
Proxy War
Iran, Revolution, and Proxy Wars
The Grand Strategy of Militant Clients
Purposes and pitfalls of war by proxy
Syria and the perils of proxy warfare
What is in a Name
Iran's Syria strategy
| Highly cited | No |
|---|