Logistics refers to the full range of raw materials and manufactured items supplied to user units in order to equip, sustain, and maintain combat and administrative operations. These include food supplies, clothing, personal gear, fuel, and various miscellaneous items. The term also covers the processes of procurement, distribution, storage, and recovery of these materials. For example, water logistics encompasses all measures taken to supply units with sufficient water in different combat situations while observing basic health and sanitation standards.

The logistics system operates across a broad spectrum of activities, from assessing national-level requirements to delivering supplies directly to end users on the battlefield. The efficiency and effectiveness of such a system depend on five core logistical principles: anticipation, integration, speed of action, continuity, and immediate or improvised procurement.

To facilitate logistical operations, supplies are generally classified into ten main categories:

1. Rations and animal feed;

2. Non-major organizational items such as clothing, individual equipment, tents, and administrative and welfare supplies;

3. Petroleum products;

4. Construction materials;

5. Ammunition;

6. Personal items;

7. Major equipment such as tanks, missile launchers, and vehicles;

8. Medical supplies;

9. Spare parts;

10. Materials related to non-military programs, such as agricultural development.

Miscellaneous logistics also include items such as water, maps, and recovered materials.

The absence of an effective logistics system and the inability to secure local supplies caused one of the most catastrophic military failures in history, recorded under the name of Napoleon Bonaparte. In 1812, the French Grand Army—numbering over half a million troops—assembled on Russia’s borders to defeat Tsar Alexander I. However, an army accustomed to fighting in the fertile and densely populated regions of central and southern Europe suddenly faced an entirely different situation. The rapid French advance deep into Russian territory stretched supply lines far beyond sustainable limits. At the same time, supply wagons struggled to move along rough roads and swampy terrain, while being constantly harassed by Cossack guerrilla attacks. The sparsely populated regions along Napoleon’s route were incapable of supporting such a massive force, and the thin, unproductive soils of the Russian steppes—combined with extreme cold and the lack of drinkable water—inflicted heavy losses on the French troops through starvation and disease. Meanwhile, the Russian army adopted a scorched-earth strategy, repeatedly retreating and destroying crops and support facilities along its path, thereby denying the enemy access to resources. As a result, when Napoleon finally reached Moscow, he encountered a ruined and deserted city. The outbreak of diseases such as typhus and dysentery within the French ranks ultimately forced Bonaparte to retreat. By the time his exhausted and sick army withdrew from Russian territory, around 400,000 soldiers had died.

Logistics also played a decisive and highly consequential role for both sides during the Iran–Iraq War. Iraq, having planned its invasion of Iran well in advance, had prepared itself logistically and stockpiled sufficient supplies. Contrary to the expectations of Iraqi military commanders, however, the Iraqi army was unable to sustain its advance after entering Iranian territory during the first year of the war. In the second and third years, following a series of successful Iranian operations, Iraq not only suffered heavy manpower losses but also lost a substantial portion of its logistical assets, including both light and heavy equipment. From the third year onward, growing concern among Western and Eastern powers—particularly regional states—over Iran’s imminent victory led to an influx of military aid to Iraq, in addition to financial assistance. Egypt transferred all remaining Eastern Bloc weapons and equipment from its own armed forces to Iraq and replaced them with Western ammunition. Further support was provided by Turkey, Jordan, the Persian Gulf states, Eastern Bloc countries, and others.

From the third year of the war onward, Iranian forces captured a wide range of Egyptian, Chinese, Russian, Brazilian, Jordanian, German, and French weapons and equipment. This global backing of Iraq continued until the end of the war and became increasingly coordinated over time, ensuring that Iraq never faced serious shortages in logistical supplies. Conditions in Iran were entirely different. The Islamic Republic of Iran had no prior plans to attack another country and therefore had not prepared itself militarily. Moreover, following the victory of the Islamic Revolution and the collapse of the Pahlavi regime, a large number of factories and industrial production centers were forced to shut down due to the departure of personnel associated with the former regime. At the same time, the Iranian Army had lost much of its readiness following the departure of American military advisors and the dismissal or escape of its senior commanders. It was under these circumstances that the war began, with the Iranian Army and popular forces rising to confront Iraq.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), established shortly after the Islamic Revolution, initially lacked major military weapons or equipment. However, as it entered the military arena, it gradually acquired light arms and equipment through procurement, battlefield captures during several major operations against the Iraqi army, and support from both the government and the population, eventually gaining access to nearly all categories of logistical supplies.

As the war continued—especially after major Iranian successes—economic and arms sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran intensified. Over time, acquiring equipment and weapons became nearly impossible. While Western, Eastern, and Arab countries were fully equipping Iraq with military supplies, Iranian armed forces met their logistical needs through domestic production, popular support, and captured Iraqi equipment.⁠[1]