 | This article needs to be updated. (May 2021) |
The military history of Iraq, due to a rich archaeological record, is one of the longest in written human history. The region of Iraq, which used to be Mesopotamia, has been referred to as the "cradle of civilization", and wars of conquest have been recorded in this region as far back as the third millennium BC. Because of its geopolitical dominance and ideology based in world domination, the Neo-Assyrian Empire is by many researchers regarded to have been the first world empire in history.[1][2] The area possesses strategic value, initially for the rich, fertile agricultural region in the Mesopotamian plain, and more recently for large petroleum deposits and access to the oil-rich Persian Gulf. The present territory of Iraq lacks significant strategic barriers, making it difficult to defend against foreign invasion.
A study done on the current Iraqi military have shown a decrease in its power beyond the war of 2003. On the other hand Iraq's military at the rule of Saddam Hussain was the greatest military in the middle east and in the top 10 world wide.
- ^ Düring, Bleda S (2020). The Imperialisation of Assyria: An Archaeological Approach. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 133. ISBN 978-1108478748.
- ^ Liverani, Mario (2017). "Thoughts on the Assyrian Empire and Assyrian Kingship". Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. p. 536. ISBN 978-1118325247.