The Persian Gulf: Seven More Lessons

At the outset of the US and Israeli military campaign against Iran, we identified seven key lessons for the new conflict. We noted that sanctions are followed by the use of military force; pressure on Iran will be long-term; concessions to the attacker are ineffective; the leaders of the target country become important targets for strikes; internal unrest encourages external intervention; the support of friendly countries is important for the target country, but does not solve its problems; and finally, the balance of power remains the key means of resolving security issues. Responding to force with force is a crude but effective way to stop escalation. Now that the conflict has been paused, we can consider new lessons, even with the understanding that such a pause will most likely be temporary.