I find it strange that in the early 80s, the USA assisted Iraq against Iran by supplying weapons and munitions, only for Iraq to fire
two exocet missles at the
USS Stark in the Gulf in 1985. If not for the valiant Damage Control teams, the ship would have been sunk, but more importantly, over 70 US Navy sailors lost their lives.
Where was the swift retribution then? Surely they represented a significant threat when they were taking shots at US Warships.
