Syria : a country and a concept

Abstract

To many outsiders Syria is indeed an enigma. Its policy and aims are clear, ye the methods adopted to implement them are impossible for many to accept. The somewhat mysterious and often suspicious actions of such a small country with a population of under 12 million has, on numerous occasions, stunned the world. Against all odds Syria has vehemently adhered to its principles, an extraordinary accomplishment in itself, in the circumstances. Moreover, many other larger, more powerful countries have foundered in the face of extreme hardship. The need to take up the Israeli challenge has made Syria what it is today. Once an exhausted Egypt had left the fray and Iraq had been drawn into battle on another front, Asad saw his country as the only remaining barrier to Israel's regional hegemony. To do this Syria needed to extend its influence to the Palestinians, into Jordan, and Lebanon. This policy inevitably imposes a huge burden on Syria. Facing Israel has necessitated the maintenance of strong armed forces which has, truly, detered direct confrontation. It became a country Israel has hesitated to attack. Syria throughout the conflict has sought an honourable solution to the crisis, which is more than can be said of many other states worldwide. Asad's Syria, has come to represent the rejection of an Israeli-dominated Middle East order, offering instead one based on a balance of power in the Arab world, preferably centered in Damascus, and an Israel within its 1948 boundaries. Asad's patience, caution and courage have secured Syria a key role in regional and, to a certain extent, international affairs. His role in the Gulf War represented a remarkable transformation in the political, economic and strategic fortunes of the state. Only a few years earlier, Syria was reeling under the pressure of diplomatic isolation, economic strangulation and the threat of increasing military vulnerability as its patron the Soviet Union, withdrew from the bipolar international scenario. From that bleak and unpromising backdrop Syria suddenly sprang forth, to be acknowledged today as an indispensable and major actor as moves gather pace to convene a peace settlement.