The rise of a great power: starting with military industry

Chapter 588: Shift of Attention
Just when the world's attention was attracted by China and focused on Southeast Asia.

A major event broke out in the Middle East, attracting the attention of countries around the world.

New developments have occurred on the Iran-Iraq battlefield, which may very likely change the course of the Iran-Iraq War.

The outskirts of Khomeini Port have been besieged for a long time by an armored division and an infantry division of the Iraqi army.

This armored division and infantry division have not fought a decent battle for two years, except for the siege of Port Khomeini.

However, this armored division and infantry division were unable to capture Khomeini Port because the Persians had accumulated three divisions of guard forces in Khomeini Port.

Port Khomeini is located in the southwest of a small island in the Musabbar Gulf in the northwest of the Persian Gulf. It is about 80 kilometers away from Port Abadan and about 62 kilometers away from Masour Oil Port. It is a major commercial port in western Persia, forming a pincer attack with Port Abadan and watching each other.

Although they were surrounded by an Iraqi armored division and an infantry division, blocking their land routes, the sea routes were all open, so the besieged defenders could also get supplies from the rear.

In this way, the result of encircling Port Khomeini and Abadan is the same as that of not encircling it.

As for the Persian warships on the other side of Khomeini Port, several of the larger ones were transferred to the eastern port, while the others remained in the port normally. They did not take the Iraqi army seriously at all. If the Iraqi army was not far away, they really wanted to bombard them with naval guns.

In terms of land forces, Persia was at a disadvantage, but in terms of air force and navy, it was at an advantage.

All countries had a tacit understanding and did not sell advanced aircraft and warships to Iraq.

As for warships, the major naval powers themselves are not very willing to sell them, and even their allies will not sell advanced warships. Those who sell warships are those that are about to be retired or have been retired, and they are all sold at high prices.

As for aircraft, both the Soviet Union and the United States have advanced aircraft for sale in the international arms market.

However, the Soviet Union and the United States had a tacit understanding and did not sell advanced third-generation aircraft to Iraq or Persia.

Saddam's ambition, as the whole world now knows, is to defeat Persia through the Iran-Iraq War and gain hegemony in the Gulf region. Once Saddam succeeds, Iraq's strength will expand rapidly. Saddam is not an easy person to deal with, so neither the Soviet Union nor the United States wants to see Saddam become the overlord of the Gulf region.

伊拉克能够从国际市场买到的，就是法国F-1战斗机、超军旗攻击机，华夏的歼7、歼8，苏联的米格21、米格23、米格25、苏15、苏17，美国的F-4、F-5战斗机。

The same thing happened in Persia.

Since the outbreak of the "Persian Gate" incident, the situation in the United States has become delicate.

Persia was able to obtain F-14 fighter jets and spare parts through Dongda as an intermediary, and even the oil exported to the United States and Europe had to go through Dongda as an intermediary.

Although it was inevitable to pay high intermediary fees, Persia had no choice.

As for Persia's warships, they are all legacies left by the Pahlavi dynasty. Persia's naval strength is much stronger than that of the Iraqi navy.

No matter how powerful Iraq is, its coastline is so short that its navy is not taken seriously at all.

Although Persia's navy was stronger than Iraq's, it did not make much progress during the entire Iran-Iraq War, and Khomeini still believed very much in the power of the army.

The Persian defenders of Khomeini Port had already prepared to fight to the death. Their strategy was simple: to defend Khomeini Port and never go out to fight! They used the favorable terrain to deal a heavy blow to the Iraqis.

The defenders of Khomeini Port received assistance from the sea and built the entire port city into a city that could bring death to the enemy. The warships in the port were not afraid of the Iraqi army on the opposite side. They were still stationed normally and provided fire support in the counterattack.

Rashid held a telescope and saw the Persian warships, and sneered.

In recent years, Rashid has made great military achievements and has been continuously promoted. Now it can be said that he has become Saddam's confidant.

Looking at the time, the sneer on Rashid's face became even wider.

At the same time, it was a very busy time at an air force base in Iraq.

This air base is very close to the front line, but it is very safe because there is an anti-aircraft missile base here, which is enough to prevent Persian planes from attacking.

At this time, two Mirage F-1s, two Super Etendard aircraft, two J-7s, one J-8, and two MiG-23s were making final preparations before departure. In addition to the two air-to-air missiles on the wingtips, the missile under the belly was particularly eye-catching.

If a British person sees this, he will have a nightmare at night.

If Americans saw this, they would burst into tears.

'Eagle Strike' anti-ship missile!
Now the Eagle Strike anti-ship missile is well-known all over the world. There are more than 20 countries equipped with the Eagle Strike anti-ship missile, which is regarded as a powerful weapon for defending the sea borders by these countries.

In the past, American warships would often enter within 12 nautical miles of other countries' territorial waters, but now they will not approach 40 nautical miles.

Gaddafi made the US Navy suffer a lot. The US Navy ships sunk by the "Eagle Strike" anti-ship missiles were enough to make the US Navy pay attention.

Planes began to take off one after another, and after takeoff, they quickly climbed to high altitudes, flew over the Shatt al-Arab River, Abadan, and then headed east all the way to Port Khomeini.

At this time, the pilot on the plane was concentrating on driving, following the route and heading directly towards the target.

At this time, Gerard had already ordered the Aegis air defense missiles to turn on their radars and be ready to intercept any possible Persian aircraft.

In recent years, the Type 80 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun, the "Vanguard" air defense missile, and the "Aegis" air defense missile have been the nightmare of the air force on the battlefield between Iran and Iraq. Countless planes have been shot down by them.

Now in the Middle East, the fame of the 'Vanguard' air defense missile and the 'Aegis' air defense missile has far surpassed that of the SAM missile. In the past, the SAM missile was the most recognized missile in the Middle East.

Especially the "Aegis" air defense missile. Ever since Iraq had the "Aegis" air defense missile and dealt a heavy blow to the Persians twice, Persian planes have never reached Baghdad again, and Saddam's sleep quality has greatly improved.

On the battlefield, because of the "Aegis" air defense missiles, pilots will be more cautious than ever before, because one careless mistake may result in the destruction of the plane and the death of people.

Both the Iraqi Air Force and the Persian Air Force suffered a lot in this regard.

The loss of an airplane is very huge, far exceeding the loss of a tank or armored vehicle.

More importantly, once an aircraft is lost, it is not easy to replenish it.

Unless it is importing J-6 fighter jets, large quantities can be imported quickly!
Otherwise, it would be difficult to import more than 50 other advanced aircraft a year.

(End of this chapter)