In 1984, the U.S. initiated “Operation Staunch,” ostensibly to prevent the sale of weapons to Iran. That same year, the U.S. lifted its ban on arms sales to Iraq. Afterwards, and throughout the following eight years, the Reagan and Bush administrations provided the Iraqis with over $5 billion dollars of aid, secured vast amounts of loans for them and sold them an extraordinary arsenal of conventional weapons and weapons systems, including easily weaponized dual use chemicals.
