Following are excerpts
from a report on a "soft warfare" exhibition in Tehran, aired
on the English-language Press TV on November 2, 2011.
Reporter: The
hidden invasion - the term refers to a new type of war with very different
weapons, weapons that are not made to kill, but are made to create doubts,
plant ideas, and change ideologies. The Hidden Invasion exhibition was
inaugurated on Wednesday in Tehran, with one aim.
Ali
Gholami, Iran Aerospace Industries: The aim of this exhibition is
to familiarize our people with the soft warfare that is taking place
as we speak in the country and its tools.
Reporter: The
history of soft warfare goes back to 1999, after the collapse of the
Soviet Union. The United States, with the experience of the two world
wars and the Cold War, was looking for a cheaper way to reach its political
goals, such as regime change.
Using cultural tools
to move the masses was the new way to go. An Iranian high-ranking military
official has his own description of the term.
Major-General Hassan
Firoozabadi, Joint Chief of Staff Iranian Armed Forces: Our definition
of soft warfare is using means to, first of all, separate man from his
rationality, and control him through his animal instincts and feelings,
and stimulants, such as narcotics and sex.
They use many means to
put their plan into action. They use satellite TV, radio, magazines,
pictures, Hollywood movies, and fashion, especially for the young, and
articles that one gets attached to, like ornaments or signs on their
backs, clothes, and other belongings.
This system, as a whole,
tries to change a revolutionary Iranian, and separate him from his school
of thought.
Military experts say
that Orange Revolution, Ukraine, is a good example of soft warfare and
how it works.
Reporter: Military
officials here say that soft war is the base for any successful hard
war, and without a soft war campaign, the occupying forces will face
resistance by the people, and will be defeated sooner or later.