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MENASource

Feb 23, 2021

Don’t rely on Moscow to help with “reconciliation” in Syria’s Daraa province

By Jomana Qaddour, Abdulrahman al-Masri

Any deal Russia strikes in Syria’s southern province will be volatile and temporary, given that resolving underlying conditions are impossible under the Bashar al-Assad regime and Russia’s direction.

Middle East Russia

MENASource

Feb 1, 2021

Syria: Which way forward under Biden?

By Frederic C. Hof

The default position of President Joe Biden and his team will likely be along the lines of trying to manage the mess.

Middle East Syria

MENASource

Jan 20, 2021

Fragmentation and perceived bias: The shortcomings of US policy towards tribes in Syria

By Haian Dukhan and Ammar Alhamad

The fragmentation and divisions that plague the Arab tribal population in northeastern Syria played a major role in the US’s decision not to rely primarily on tribal auxiliaries in its fight against ISIS.

Middle East Syria

MENASource

Jan 11, 2021

The Assad regime faces a Rubik’s Cube of challenges in 2021

By Nizar Mohamad and Abdulrahman al-Masri

The coming year will likely present the Bashar al-Assad regime with a perplexing stalemate as it attempts to navigate a political, economic, and security landscape beset with a Rubik’s Cube of challenges.

Middle East Politics & Diplomacy

MENASource

Dec 23, 2020

Five decades of Baathism survived because of nationalism

By Rahaf Aldoughli

Implicit in understanding the role of nationalism in maintaining the Assad regime’s survival is exploring the extent to which this ideology has given support to it.

Middle East Syria

MENASource

Dec 14, 2020

Russian aid in Syria: An underestimated instrument of soft power

By Jonathan Robinson

Free from needing outside help by the international community, Russia’s self-sufficient aid ecosystem undermines, devalues, and rivals UN-led efforts in Syria, threatens to erode trust in the wider aid system, and provides a dangerous alternative narrative about the humanitarian environment in Syria for the Bashar al-Assad regime.

Middle East Politics & Diplomacy

MENASource

Dec 10, 2020

Pity the nation: Assessing a half century of Assadist rule

By Steven Heydemann

The Syrian uprising is a more damning referendum on the Assad family legacy than any judgement that might be rendered by outsiders.

Middle East Politics & Diplomacy

MENASource

Dec 3, 2020

Limited and constrained: The Biden administration and the prospects of a Syria policy

By Abdulrahman al-Masri

While any departure from the Trump administration’s transactional and inconsistent leadership is welcomed, the hopes surrounding the incoming Biden administration’s return to engagement in Syria requires more in-depth scrutiny.

Politics & Diplomacy Syria

MENASource

Dec 1, 2020

2021 budget reveals the depth of Syria’s economic woes

By William Christou and Karam Shaar

Unless a political settlement is reached and the sanctions are lifted to enable reconstruction, the economy of regime-held Syria will continue to struggle.

Middle East Politics & Diplomacy

MENASource

Nov 16, 2020

ICMP report highlights need to launch missing persons process for Syria

By Kathryne Bomberger

While the present Syrian government is unlikely to cooperate, much can be done in the short and medium term to lay the groundwork for a sustainable and credible process. Finding more than 130,000 missing persons will require investigations across Syria and beyond.

Middle East Politics & Diplomacy

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Through our Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, the Atlantic Council works with allies and partners in Europe and the wider Middle East to protect US interests, build peace and security, and unlock the human potential of the region.