Understanding the Iran-Hezbollah Nexus from the Perspective of Operational Art.

摘要

The monograph critically analyzes the relationship between Iran and Hezbollah to contradict the prevailing belief that religion is the sole factor responsible for cohesion. It identifies the relationship between the master and its proxy as the problem rather than Iran or Hezbollah as the problem. The paper dissects the relationship to its roots by first providing a clear understanding of the shared ideologies, with its powerful influence on the strategic approach. The monograph then systematically builds on that to provide a better understanding of coinciding and differing strategic interests of both, and shows how Iran mitigates these differences through compromise and leverage policy. Iran tampers with its regional gains and alters them to coincide with those of Hezbollah. In this way, Iran attempts to show that similar strategic gains provide cohesion between Iran and Hezbollah that promises subordination of the proxy to its master without any stringent control. Iranians clearly know the cause and nature of the relationship with Hezbollah and understand the inherent limitations and constraints. By assigning a strategic objective to Hezbollah, they ensure that it lies within the bounds of the political ideology of Hezbollah while influencing Iranian strategic aims. Hezbollah sees the smaller picture and is incapable of identifying the hidden Iranian agenda behind the guidance they give Hezbollah. This monograph evaluates the method used by Iran to control Hezbollah through the framework of operational art by critically analyzing events through the lens of four of its elements: operational reach, tempo, depth, and simultaneity.