RETHINKING RUSSIAN MISSION IN SYRIA
Since the collapse of the USSR, Syria has remained to be center of Russian Middle East foreign policy regarding its economic and political ties. As a result of the Arab Spring, the Syrian regime and President Assad has shaken with the unrestrained uprisings and western sanctions and eventually crisis turned into a fierce civil war. From the inauguration of the crisis Russia has never altered its political view on Syria even though there were expectations to the contrary. Moscow officially remained calling for “No military intervention against Syria” and that’s why three times vetoed US resolutions concerning widening sanctions or allowing multilateral military operations. However, Russia claims that Moscow is not protective of Syrian regime or Assad instead prevents Syria to fall into a long-term civil war. On the other hand, Syria is one of the most crucial arms importer of Russia and hosting Russian naval base on its Mediterranean coast. In this paper it is aimed to analyze the Russian stable and consistent foreign policy on Syria and its reasons as well as latest Russian and US rising tensions.
When Domestic Factors Prevail Upon Foreign Ambitions: Russia's Strategic Game in Syria
The Syrian crisis is dividing the international community like no other Arab uprising has done so far. While the United States and the European Union stand squarely against the Syrian regime, Russia remains a staunch defender of state sovereignty and the Al-Assad regime. There are three main factors that explain this position: Moscow’s historical relations with Damascus; Russia’s traditional opposition to US presence in the Middle East; and the surge in domestic opposition in Russia itself. This last factor, and the recent evolution of Russian domestic politics, is crucial to grasp Moscow’s foreign policy towards Syria and the Middle East, as well as towards the United States and Europe.
Historical dictionary of Lebanon
The Lebanese civil war has made the study of Lebanon a difficult endeavor. The complexity of Lebanese society is the result of a unique political system and a richly diverse populace. This volume will help those who wish to delve beyond the superficial journalistic accounts of Lebanese society and culture. Entries encompass information about various subject areas, including political leaders, poets, artists, actors, writers, musicians, singers, important events and places, political parties, militia groups, foreign interests, and military elements. It is important to note that this dictionary does not exclude women, as is often the case with historical works on Lebanon. It escapes the narrow confines of a male-gendered history of Lebanon. Many of the personalities presented in this text are not presently known to English readers, and the volume easily bridges the widening gap between Arabic and English approaches to the study of Lebanese history. It also offers crucial information about rarely discussed issues such as AIDS, homosexuality, and prostitution, and delineates the ethnicities that exist in the country, making clear the balances of power that propelled Lebanon into civil war and dragged it back toward peace again. The volume includes an extensive bibliographic section with sources in Arabic, English, French, and German. An essential volume on a country that has occupied center-stage in the last decade of Middle Eastern politics.