Armies of snow and armies of sand: The impact of Soviet military doctrine on Arab militaries

During the Cold War, the Soviet Union emerged as the principal military pat ron of Egypt, Syria and Iraq. Accordingly, many have assumed that the armed forces of these states adopted Soviet military doctrine, and that this fac tor accounted for their generally lackluster battlefield performance. In fa ct, reliance on Soviet military doctrine varied considerably between these three militaries, and at times contributed to success when they adapted it to their own cultural predilections and operational requirements.