Ideology and principles clash in Trump’s Iran war | Letters

Lt Col (retd) Rob Symonds and David Flint respond to an article by Nesrine Malik on the motivations driving the conflict between the US and Iran Nesrine Malik is correct in highlighting the differences between the US and Iran in their understanding of conflict as a means to an end ( Trump’s chaotic war on Iran has dragged into its sixth week because he is fighting an adversary he doesn’t understand, 6 April ). However, she fails to outline the distinctly different ends that the two protagonists believe in. The US has since 1945 represented the west’s vision of wealth, influence and opportunity based on material ownership and thus power.