Iranian Ambassador to Iraq Iraj Masjedi warned the US against attacking
Iran in comments on Iraqi television, saying that the Iranian government
would respond to any strike.
Not only would there be a reaction, but the reaction would be against US forces in Iraq.
Iran says they prefer the US to withdraw these troops because they
don’t do anything constructive, but that Iran won’t interfere with them
so long as the US isn’t attacking.
This warning is relatively obvious, given Iraq’s proximity to Iran and
how many US troops are available there in the event a war breaks out. At
the same time, this is the worst-case scenario for Iraq, which doesn’t
want to be the host of the war.
Iraq’s desire for neutrality in such a war probably isn’t realistic,
both because they host so many US troops and because a number of Iraqi
Shi’ite militias would doubtless join such a conflict on the side of
Iran. If fighting breaks out, it’s going to be a region-wide problem.
Iran: If US Attacks, US Troops in Iraq Will Be Targeted
Ambassador warns US should expect a reaction to any strike
Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.
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