Azerbaijan, Baku, Dec. 14 / Trend T. Konyayeva /
Iran intends to engage the forces of Hizballah in case of war with the United States and Israel. It also expects to provide support for Syria during a possible military confrontation, Dr. Meir Litvak of the Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies at Tel Aviv University said.
"It is obvious, and beyond any doubt, that Iran intends to use Hizballah in case of a war with Israel or the US. On the other hand, the recent visit by the Iranian Defense Minister to Syria and the mutual military pact which they signed was intended to ensure Syrian support for Iran in case of war," Dr. Litvak told Trend via E-mail.
Last week, Iranian Defense Minister Ahmad Vahidi, headed by the Iranian delegation arrived in Syria at the invitation of his Syrian counterpart. During the visit, Vahidi, met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
During the meeting, al-Assad and Vahidi discussed several issues, including expansion of ties, particularly in the field of defense, and having mutual interest.
Vahidi's visit was held a week after Secretary of the Iranian Supreme National Security Council Saeed Jalili, paid his official visit to Damascus.
Iran's intention to engage Hizballah in a possible war with the United States and Israel is the main cause of more than 40,000 rockets supplied to Hizballah by Iran, Litvak said.
"It also explains why Iran was not very happy with the 2006 war between Israel and Hizballah, which it regarded as misusing of the rockets and weapons it supplied before," Israeli expert said.
The armed confrontation between Israel and the radical Shiite group Hizballah, actually controlled southern Lebanon, continued from July 12 to August 14, 2006. A ceasefire was declared in accordance with the resolution of the UN Security Council.
During a month Hizballah fighters conducted an unprecedented massive rocket bombardment of northern Israeli towns and settlements.
"You have to remember that Hizballah declared publicly that Khanemei is their supreme authority, which means that their relations with Iran are not those of allies, but more as subordinates," Litvak said.
Hizballah is a militarized Lebanese Shiite organization and political party, standing for the establishment an Islamic state like Iran in Lebanon. The core of the ideology includes the ideology of the leader of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, Ruhollah Khomeini. It gets financial and military support from Iran and Syria. Hizballah was founded in 1982 with the assistance of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) on a wave of anti-U.S and anti-Israel moods to fight the Israeli military presence in South Lebanon.
As to support of Syria, Litvak thinks that its own interests can retain from participation in a possible war with the United States and Israel.
"I think that Iran would like very much that Syria will fight Israel in case of an attack on Iran, but Iran does not think it is inevitable as Syria may have its own political calculations," he said.