ABSTRACT
Iraq provides a prime example of the salience of domestic factors as influences on foreign policy orientation and behavior. According to the 1970 Iraqi constitution and its 1973 amendments, the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC) is the supreme political organ and the highest legislative body. It oversees all foreign and domestic policies and elects one of its members as president of the RCC and the republic and another as vice-president. The analysis of Iraq's domestic environment will deal with geography, population and social structure, economic and military capabilities, and political structure. The geography of Iraq presents more constraints than opportunities for the country's foreign policy. The Kurdish issue represents one of the most important linkages between population structure and Iraq's foreign policy, especially at the regional level. The relevance of the Kurdish conflict to an understanding of Iraq's foreign policy was not limited to the Iraqi position in Arab affairs.
