Brookings: Topics - Syria

Going Home? Prospects and Pitfalls for Large-Scale Return of Iraqis

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Recently discussion has turned to the prospects for the large-scale return of refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) to Iraq. More than 4 million Iraqis have been displaced, either internally or externally. And while the Iraqi and US governments, policymakers in the region, and humanitarian actors assume that most will return to Iraq in the near future, Elizabeth Ferris points out that experience with other displacement crises indicates that return will be neither automatic nor straightforward.

Syria and Turkey Deepen Bilateral Relations

Wed, 06 May 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The joint Turkish-Syrian exercise and the subsequent military technical agreement show further deepening of bilateral relations between Turkey and Syria. Bilal Saab examines the regional context within which the military exercise was conducted and analyzes its implications for each country and the Middle East. He concludes that Turkish-Syrian relations still fall short of a strategic alliance.

The Syrian-Israeli Relationship as a U.S. Policy Issue

Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

March 20, 2009, 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM

On March 20, the Saban Center hosted Itamar Rabinovich, Charles and Andrea Bronfman Distinguished Visiting Fellow, to present a comprehensive analysis of the interaction of American, Israeli, and Syrian policies over the last three decades. He was joined by Frederic Hof, CEO of Armitage Associates, L.C.

On a New Footing: U.S.-Syria Relations

Thu, 19 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The recent high-level meeting between U.S. and Syrian officials in Damascus effectively ends recent U.S. policy of isolating Syria. Bilal Saab examines this dialogue and the future of U.S.-Syria relations.

The Syrian-Israeli Relationship as a U.S. Policy Issue

Mon, 02 Mar 2009 00:00:00 GMT

In this Saban Center Analysis Paper, Itamar Rabinovich examines the history of the U.S.-Syrian relationship and the Israeli-Syrian conflict to offer policy options for the Obama Administration. Rabinovich presents a comprehensive analysis of American, Israeli, and Syrian interests that accounts for the successes and shortcomings of U.S. and Israeli engagements with Syria over the past three decades.

Displacement in the Muslim World

Mon, 16 Feb 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Throughout the Muslim world, millions of people have been forced to flee their homes and communities for many reasons, including both conflicts and natural disasters. This massive displacement of people affects both national development plans and individual human development, affecting relationships between countries, UN Security Council discussions, and peace processes. In short, as Hady Amr and Elizabeth Ferris argue, understanding—and resolving—displacement is central to development, peace, and security.

Returns to Iraq: Questions and More Questions

Fri, 19 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

As violent incidents decrease in Iraq and as US combat troops prepare to withdraw, expectations will grow that Iraqis will return to their communities in growing numbers. In fact, UN Officials and political leaders in Iraq, the region, and the US have always expected that return will be the durable solution for Iraqi IDPs and refugees without giving serious consideration to other options. For returns to be successful, the government of Iraq and the international community need to learn from the lessons of other mass returns of displaced populations and refugees.

Middle East Needs Obama's Touch

Wed, 17 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

President Barack Obama will face a series of challenges in the Middle East demanding urgent attention: an Iraq that could still unravel, an Iran approaching the nuclear threshold, a faltering Israeli-Palestinian peace process, and weak governments in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories. Martin Indyk and Richard Haass outline what the initial goals of the Obama administration should be in the region.

Beyond Iraq: A New U.S. Strategy for the Middle East

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Martin Indyk and Richard Haass argue to be successful in the Middle East, the Obama administration will need to move beyond Iraq, find ways to deal constructively with Iran, and forge a final-status Israeli-Palestinian agreement.

Saban Forum 2008

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 17:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

December 05, 2008, 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM
December 06, 2008, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
December 07, 2008, 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM

On December 5-7, in the month before the new U.S. administration enters office, the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings brought together top Israeli and American policymakers, journalists, and members of the public and private sectors, as well as leaders from Britain and Turkey to discuss the most critical issues in the Middle East.

A Time for Diplomatic Renewal: Toward a New U.S. Strategy in the Middle East

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Martin Indyk and Richard Haass note that President-elect Obama will face a series of critical, complex, and interrelated challenges in the Middle East that will demand his immediate attention: an Iran apparently intent on approaching or crossing the nuclear threshold as quickly as possible; a fragile situation in Iraq that is straining the U.S. military; weak governments in Lebanon and Palestine under challenge from stronger Hezbollah and Hamas militant organizations; a faltering Israeli-Palestinian peace process; and American influence diluted by a severely damaged reputation.

Restoring the Balance in the Middle East

Tue, 02 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Martin Indyk and Richard Haass joined Charlie Rose to discuss the newly released Saban Center at Brookings-Council on Foreign Relations book Restoring the Balance: A Middle East Strategy for the Next President. They highlighted three major foreign policy challenges in the region that President-elect Obama will need to focus on and detailed some of the recommendations found within the book.

Global Economic Crisis: Mixed Forecast for Jordan and Syria

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Jordan and Syria have recently faced similar economic challenges such as absorbing large numbers of Iraqi refugees and fighting high inflation. Yet the global economic slowdown may have unique implications for development and reform in each country, as Taher Kanaan and Nader Kabbani reveal in interviews with the Middle East Youth Initiative’s Navtej Dhillon.

Syria Seeks Change: On Its Own Terms

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Bilal Saab analyzes Syria's relations with the West as well as its Middle East neighbors. Saab argues that though U.S.-Syrian relations have been dismal throughought recent history, there is potential for improvement under a new U.S. president.

Syria and Israel: Keep Them Talking

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 00:00:00 GMT

As tensions between Syria and Israel remain high, Bruce Riedel and Bilal Saab believe that the indirect negotiations which began last May between the countries have gone as far as they can. Now, they argue, it is time for direct talks between the countries with the United States as a mediator.

A Grand Strategy for America in the Middle East

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 14:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

September 05, 2008, 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM

The Saban Center for Middle East Policy at Brookings hosted Senior Fellow Kenneth Pollack for a discussion of his book A Path Out of the Desert: A Grand Strategy for America in the Middle East. In the book, Pollack offers a long-term strategy to improve the political, economic and social problems that underlie the region’s many crises.

Engaging Syria: New Negotiations, Old Challenges

Wed, 23 Jul 2008 12:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

July 23, 2008, 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM

The Saban Center for Middle East Policy hosted a policy forum luncheon in conjunction with Search for Common Ground on July 23, 2008. The Saban Center welcomed three members of Search for Common Ground’s US-Syria Working Group, including featured speaker Ahmad Samir al-Taki, director of the Orient Center for International Studies in Damascus and consultant to the Syrian Prime Minister.

Surge in the Number of Iraqi Refugees

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 16:20:14 GMT

A new United Nations report finds that in the past year the number of refugees worldwide has increased from 9 to 11 million. Khalid Koser, deputy director of the Brookings-Bern Project on Internal Displacement, discusses the causes behind this increase as well as possible implications if the number of refugees continues to climb.

Israel-Syria Relations: Does America Have a Role in Ankara?

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT

As indirect peace talks between Israel and Syria continue in Turkey, Ariel Kastner writes about the current climate in both countries regarding a possible breakthrough. One party that is so far missing in these talks, he contends, is the United States as a mediator or participant.

The Changing Nature of State Sponsorship of Terrorism

Thu, 29 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

The current United States approach to state sponsorship of terrorism is flawed, writes Daniel Byman. He suggests that instead of simply managing a list of state sponsors, Washington needs to recognize the complexity of sponsorship, monitor states using a broad definition of what constitutes state sponsorship, and use diplomatic pressure as well as political and economic penalties when needed.

The Changing Nature of State Sponsorship of Terrorism

Wed, 28 May 2008 12:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

May 28, 2008, 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM

The Saban Center for Middle East Policy hosted a policy luncheon on May 28, 2008, launching a Saban Center analysis paper of the same name. The paper’s author, Daniel Byman, presented a summary of the paper’s findings. Bruce Hoffman, Senior Fellow at the U.S. Military Academy and Professor at the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, provided comments. Bruce Riedel moderated the discussion.

Lebanon Rivals Agree to Deal

Wed, 21 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Tamara Cofman Wittes discusses a new deal announced in Doha between Lebanese factions including Hezbollah. Wittes believes that this decision should force others in the Middle East to recognize that Hezbollah is a regional actor with ambitions outside of Lebanon.

U.S. Policy and Syria: Who's Converting Whom?

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

Testifying before the Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Peter Rodman argued "the conditions do not exist for an improvement of relations with Syria as long as Syrian policies remain hostile to important interest of ours in the Middle East." He concluded that Syria must change course in relation to Iraq, Lebanon, and Arab-Israeli peace before the U.S. reaches out to the country.

The Future of U.S.-Syrian Relations

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT

In congressional testimony, Martin Indyk argued that the current policy of isolating Syria has had mixed results. He believes that the next U.S. president should consider a different approach that could foster a more productive relationship allowing mutual goals to be realized in the troubled region.

The Future of the Middle East

Tue, 04 Mar 2008 10:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

March 04, 2008, 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM

On March 4, Brookings hosted journalist and author Robin Wright for a discussion of her new book, Dreams and Shadows: The Future of the Middle East. Wright focused on the pivotal countries and regions of Iraq, Iran, Syria, Egypt, Lebanon, the Palestinian territories and Morocco, drawing on first-hand interviews with many of the region’s key players.

The Future of the Syrian-Iranian Alliance

Fri, 21 Dec 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Bilal Saab and Bruce Riedel argue that the Bush Administration pushed for a meeting in Annapolis "to gather the pro-U.S. Arab states under the aegis of a peace process for the purpose of containing or at least balancing the rising power of Iran."

Whither Syria

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 12:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

December 13, 2007, 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM

This fifth session of the Crisis in the Middle East Task Force, hosted by the Saban Center for Middle East Policy, focused on the difficult in balance among competing U.S. priorities towards given its interference with the U.S. agenda in the Middle East.

Iran: The Lesson of September 6

Fri, 16 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Bruce Riedel discusses the recent air strike conducted by Israel against a suspected Syrian nuclear installation in context of the broader Middle East and a possible future Israeli strike targeting Iran's nuclear program.

Syria and Israel: Precarious Possiblities

Thu, 18 Oct 2007 12:00:00 GMT

Event Information:

October 18, 2007, 12:00 PM to 01:30 PM

The Saban Center for Middle East Policy hosted a policy luncheon discussion with Itamar Rabinovich and Murhaf Jouejati. The discussion focused on current tensions between Israel and Syria, and whether there is a possibility of an Israel-Syria peace agreement.

What is Syrian President Bashar Assad up to?

Tue, 09 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Daniel L. Byman states that “unlike his father and predecessor, Hafez, Bashar is a gambler. And he is rolling the dice in Iraq, in Lebanon, with Israel, and most dangerously at home in Syria.”

Inheriting Syria : Bashar's Trial by Fire, Revised edition

Tue, 01 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT

In this revised and updated paperback, Flynt Leverett once again pulls back the curtains to present a fascinating and authoritative portrait of Syria under the leadership of the Asad dynasty, particularly the strategic legacy bequeathed from Hafez al

Should The United States Engage Syria? A Saban Center Policy Forum Debate

Fri, 17 Nov 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Should the United States engage with Syria? The renewed interest in this question derives from concerns about Syria's alliance with Iran and Hizballah following the recent war between Israel and Hizballah, and a widespread view that the Arab-Israeli peace process needs to be revived.

Iraqi Refugees: Carriers of Conflict

Wed, 01 Nov 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Article by Daniel L. Byman and Kenneth M. Pollack, The Atlantic Monthly (November 2006)

Dialogue with Syria: Opportunity or Ambush?

Mon, 23 Oct 2006 12:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

October 23, 2006, 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM

Ammar Abdulhamid debated Joshua Landis about U.S. policy towards Syria. Abdulhamid argued that signals from Syrian President Bashar al-Asad are in essence a diversionary tactic. Landis, disagreeing, urged the United States to engage with Syria and assist Syria in the recover if the Golan Heights from Israel., Saban Center Director, Martin S. Indyk, chaired the luncheon.

Keep Syria and Iran Out of Negotiations Over Lebanon

Thu, 27 Jul 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Interview with Martin S. Indyk, Council on Foreign Relations (7/27/06)

Syria and Iran: What's Behind the Enduring Alliance?

Wed, 19 Jul 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Daniel L. Byman, Slate (7/19/06)

Defense Pact: Syria and Iran Revive an Old Ghost

Tue, 04 Jul 2006 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Bilal Y. Saab, The Daily Star (7/4/06)

Syria's Wobbly Godfather Jr.

Sun, 30 Oct 2005 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Flynt L. Leverett, The Washington Post (10/30/05)

Syria After Mehlis: How the Lebanese Prime Minister's Assassination Will Affect U.S.- Syrian Relations

Thu, 27 Oct 2005 10:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

October 27, 2005, 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM

Former Senior Director for Near Eastern Affairs under George W. Bush and Brookings Senior Fellow Flynt Leverett, in addition to Ammar Abdulhamid, a Syrian expert on minorities and human rights in the Middle East and visiting fellow in the Arab Democracy and Development project at Brookings, discussed the implications of the Mehlis investigation for Syrian and U.S. policy. Martin Indyk, director of the Saban Center, moderated the discussion.

United Nations Should Lead the Effort Against Syria

Sun, 23 Oct 2005 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Martin S. Indyk, Financial Times (10/23/05)

The New Dynamics in Syria and Lebanon

Wed, 22 Jun 2005 10:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

June 22, 2005, 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM

Syria's withdrawal from Lebanon inaugurated a new period of domestic uncertainty in both countries. Flynt Leverett, a senior fellow with the Saban Center at Brookings and author of Inheriting Syria: Bashar's Trial by Fire (Brookings, April 2005), and David Ignatius, associate editor of the Washington Post, participated in a panel discussion on the wider issues of Syrian and Lebanese politics. Former Ambassador to Israel and current Director of the Saban Center Martin Indyk moderated.

Inheriting Syria: Bashar's Trial By Fire

Mon, 25 Apr 2005 10:30:00 GMT

Event Information:

April 25, 2005, 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM

At this briefing, sponsored by the Saban Center, Seymour Hersh, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist for the New Yorker and author most recently of Chain of Command, and James Bennett, feature writer for the New York Times and the paper's Jerusalem bureau chief from 2001 to 2004, will join Leverett for a policy discussion on Syria's domestic politics and foreign relations and U.S. policy options toward the Asad regime.

Syria loves Ankara but will the relationship last?

Tue, 19 Apr 2005 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Omer Taspinar and Emile El-Hokayem, The Daily Star (4/19/05)

Syria's Role in Lebanon

Thu, 03 Mar 2005 00:00:00 GMT

Martin S. Indyk, Assistant Secretary of State for Near East Affairs and U.S. Ambassador to Israel during the Clinton administration, says that while President Bush deserves credit for using his bully pulpit, Syria's departure from Lebanon wouldn't necessarily lead to democracy, or peace. Indyk, now director of the Washington-based Saban Center for Middle East Policy, talked to TIME's Elaine Shannon.

Lebanon's Hidden Dangers

Tue, 01 Mar 2005 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Daniel Byman, foreignpolicy.com (3/1/05)

America Must Do More to Engage with Syria

Thu, 09 Oct 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Flynt Leverett, Financial Times (10/9/03)

How to Get Syria Out of the Terrorism Business

Sun, 04 May 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Flynt Leverett, The New York Times (5/4/03)

Is Syria Next?

Fri, 25 Apr 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Philip H. Gordon in Liberation (4/25/03)

Syria's Place in the U.S. Agenda

Sun, 20 Apr 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Shibley Telhami in The Baltimore Sun (April 20, 2003)

Syria Hears the Sound of Rattling Sabers

Tue, 15 Apr 2003 00:00:00 GMT

Opinion by Philip H. Gordon for the Iraq Report (April 15, 2003)

Syria, Israel Must Give to Get

Sun, 02 Apr 2000 00:00:00 GMT

Syria, Israel must give to get, Opinion in The Baltimore Sun by Shibley Telhami, foreign-policy, The Brookings Institution