U.S. committee orders a fresh review of war policy

Duncan reported resistance to binding oil-import ceilings from other consumers and Reagan’s transition team. He sought a standby arrangement for rapid action if the war worsened market pressure.

State Department instructions asked for Saudi help meeting Turkish and Portuguese oil needs. The cable sought replacement supplies and price moderation while Iranian and Iraqi exports remained...

IEA ministers agreed on stock use, conservation and measures against destabilizing purchases. They set a collective demand-reduction objective but did not adopt country-specific import ceilings.

Carter’s letter to Fahd urged continued Saudi cooperation on output and pricing. It linked producer-consumer coordination to limiting economic damage while the war disrupted Iranian and Iraqi exports.

Resolution 35/144 C requested an impartial investigation of alleged chemical-weapons use with medical and technical experts, including on-site evidence collection with the countries’ consent.

OPEC’s Bali conference ended with revised official price limits despite tensions between Iran and Iraq. Diplomatic reporting said the war featured prominently without stopping the conference’s basic...

Saunders reported that Saudi contingency planning had stalled over disputes about F-15 equipment. The briefing showed limits to security cooperation that had expanded after the invasion of Iran.

The UN announced that Iran and Iraq had agreed to a second visit by Palme, planned for 13–19 January. Agreement to receive him remained distinct from agreement on peace.

After the January 5 launch, the Iranian armored offensive was encircled and suffered heavy losses. The failure sharpened debate over military command and helped reveal the limits of early...

Washington instructed Gulf embassies to challenge oil-price increases. Its cable argued that higher prices aggravated the war’s disruption and harmed both industrial and developing economies.