Reshaping the Islamic Republic

Like the eight-year-long Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s and last June’s 12-day Israel-Iran war, this year’s Iran war has reshaped the Islamic Republic.

The Iran-Iraq war fuelled the Islamic Republic’s initial embrace of nationalism at the expense of the revolutionary zeal that drove the 1979 toppling of the Shah and the Republic’s first 18 months.

This and last year’s war cemented the transition and emboldened a new generation of confident leaders who were formed in the war of the 1980s and have since proven themselves in their ability to prepare for and stand their ground against overwhelming US military power.

Their newly found confidence frames the Islamic Republic’s strategy and goals in negotiations to end the war, including their insistence that Iran will retain control of the Strait of Hormuz, even if that primarily means the ability to disrupt and deny free passage through the waterway rather than absolute control.