Independence Matters

Each year Iranians commemorate 31 Shahrivar (Iranian Calendar) as the start of the Sacred Defense Week. On this date in 1980, Iraqi forces under Saddam Hussein invaded Iran and started a war that lasted for 8 years. In this war, Saddam Hussein enjoyed allout support from many Arab and Western countries. Saddam supporters even knowingly ignored the use of chemical weapons against Iranian forces and civilians. Using experiences of this onesided war, Iran aimed at selfindependence and selfsufficiency in providing means of defense and creating deterrence to guarantee the security of Iran. Now, Iran produces 90 of its military needs and is among the top missile powers in the world.