As a result of the Military Institution between Revolution and Statehood Workshop, held in Riyadh on May 2017, Rasanah issued a book that combined all aspects of study on the Military Institution in Iran in both English and Arabic languages.
The workshop’s goal was to understand the “other” and its capabilities, as well as its points of strength and weakness and its direct and indirect tools. The workshop analyzed three central aspects of the Iranian military institution: its ideological dimension and military doctrine, its role in the balance of political power, and its involvement in the outside world. The research papers in this book are the result of lengthy discussions and the exchange of ideas among Iranian affairs specialists – both participants and nonparticipants in the workshop – over the course of a year, until the publication of this book.
The papers in this book are arranged so that they shift from the general to the particular as follows:
» The Ideological Dimension of the Military Institution by Sultan Mohammad Alnuaimi (Ph.D.). In this study, the writer handles the ideology of the Iranian military institution by analyzing how through its ideological and moral guidance institutions, the military promotes its ideology among its personnel, as well as to all social segments in Iran.
» The Relationship between the Military Institution and the Iranian Political System in Light of Compatibility Theory by Fathi Abu Bakr Almaraghy (Ph.D.). In this study, the writer discusses the theories explaining the nature of relations between the Iranian military institution and the political system. The writer explains concepts related to the Iranian regime and military institution in terms of their structure, rise, and role. The writer measures the consensus level among them by analyzing four facets: the social composition of military personnel, the political decision-making process of the military institution, the recruitment channels, and the pattern in which the military institution evaluates public views and values towards itself.
» The Military Doctrine of the Iranian Armed Forces: Considering the Dual Army and the Revolutionary Guards by Mo’taz Mohammad Salama. In this study, the writer presents a new view of what he calls “Basdarat” – the Iranian social and state doctrine. This means the IRGC has integrated itself into the center of the state and imposed its ideology and military doctrine on society and the army. The writer handles the external expansionist tendency in the IRGC doctrine, such as pre-emptive wars, carving out spheres of influence, flaring sectarian wars, cloning the IRGC, guerrilla warfare, and promoting terrorism. The writer concludes his study by devising a strategy for breaking down the IRGC military doctrine and promoting gradual change in Iran by de-militarizing society while maintaining a strategy of nonmilitary confrontation with the IRGC doctrine and introducing a new model of development by the GCC countries, with the goal of embarrassing the Iranian regime in front of its own people.
» The Iranian Military Institution: Combat Capabilities, Deployment Plans, and Functions by Saad Mohammad Ibn Nami (Ph.D.). In this study, the writer presents a statistical view of Iranian military capabilities and the military industry. He offers a comprehensive explanation of the deployment of Iranian ground, naval, and air forces, as well as an analysis of the Iranian electronic warfare units and cyber army.
» Militarization of Shiism by Mohammed Saqr Alsulami (Ph.D.), Chairman of the International Institute for Iranian Studies. In this study, the writer presents his view of the concept of “militarizing Shiism.” Firstly, the writer handles militarization as an independent variable and Shiism as a dependent variable. Secondly, he handles Shiism as an independent variable and militarization as a dependent variable. In addition, the writer handles militarizing Shiism inside and outside Iranian borders by discussing two factors: the impact of Shiism on the IRGC and the impact of militarization on Shiism.
» An Assessment of the Iranian Military Doctrine and Military Leadership: Developments, Obstacles, and Prospects for Change by Alex Vatanka (Ph.D.). In this study, the writer discusses the consolidation of the doctrine of asymmetric warfare in the Iranian military institution, the concept of the Martyr State, the change in Iranian military tactics after a change in the nature of the enemy in the Iranian mentality, and the role of Iran’s partners in supporting the Iranian military institution.
» The Economic Activities of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC): Tools and Implications on Iran and the Region by Ahmad Shamsuddin Leila. In this study, the writer handles the economic activities of the IRGC and their internal and external impact by discussing several facets, such as the tools supporting the IRGC’s economic strength. The IRGC controls a significant part of the Iranian banking sector, the Iranian borders that facilitate its smuggling activities, and the Iranian Bazaar. Externally, the IRGC uses its external military operations to establish economic agreements for political purposes with countries like Iraq. Also, it carries out reconstruction projects in the countries where IRGC elements reside.
Please don’t hesitate to contact Rasanah to get the Military Institution between Revolution and Statehood book at [email protected] or [email protected].
