The Conflict in Syria: Understanding and Avoiding Regional Spillover Effects

Abstract

As the conflict in Syria between a loose confederation of rebel factions and the Assad regime unfolds over time, it is easy to forget that the conflict is not taking place in a vacuum. Patrons and neighbors such as Iran, Russia, Libya, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and other Arab Gulf States are pouring financial and military aid into Syria to determine the outcome of the conflict. Such outside support can perpetuate the existing civil war in Syria and ignite larger regional hostilities between Sunni and Shia areas that could reshape the political geography of the Middle East. In fact, we are already seeing the historical hatreds between extremists on both sides of the conflict spill over, spreading fear and influencing political sentiment and opportunism north and east into Turkey and Iraq; west into Lebanon, Israel, and Palestine; and south into Jordan and the Arabian Gulf states.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 2014
Accession Number
ADA608752

Entities

Organizations

  • RAND Corporation

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Arabia
  • Civil War
  • Corporations
  • Geography
  • Health Care
  • Homeland Security
  • Intellectual Property
  • Law
  • Middle East
  • National Security
  • Saudi Arabia
  • Security
  • Terrorists
  • United Arab Emirates
  • Violence
  • War

Fields of Study

  • Sociology

Readers

  • East Asian Political and Security Studies within the Soviet Union
  • Political Violence and Terrorism Studies.