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Curated by Project Syndicate

The Syrian Quagmire

10 commentaries

The world’s attention is drawn to Syria seemingly only when Syrian troops drive rebel forces from another town or city, or attack civilians using chemical weapons. But with the help of Russia and Iran, President Bashar al-Assad has consolidated his position, and the threat of a regional war looms.

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  1. The US Needs a Syria Strategy
    A convoy of US forces armoured vehicles drives near the village of Yalanli DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP/Getty Images

    The US Needs a Syria Strategy

    Apr 23, 2018 Shlomo Ben-Ami worries that the Trump administration's recent missile strikes will make a bad situation worse.

  2. Missile Strikes Are Not a Syria Strategy
    The guided-missile cruiser USS Monterey fires a Tomahawk land attack missile at Syria Matthew Daniels/U.S. Navy via Getty Images

    Missile Strikes Are Not a Syria Strategy

    Apr 19, 2018 Richard Haass thinks the latest US, British, and French attack failed to achieve even the tactical goal of deterrence.

  3. Trump, Syria, and the Threat of Region-Wide War
    Getty Images Halil el-Abdullah/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

    Trump, Syria, and the Threat of Region-Wide War

    Apr 11, 2018 Fawaz A. Gerges warns that a US withdrawal could set the stage for an even more devastating conflict.

  4. The UN’s Crimes of Omission
    UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addresses the assembly during a UN Security Council meeting Spencer Platt/Getty Images

    The UN’s Crimes of Omission

    Mar 14, 2018 Nabil Fahmy upbraids the body and its most powerful members for shirking their peacekeeping responsibilities.

  5. What Putin Wants in Syria
    Children gather next to members of the Russian military police in Syria GEORGE OURFALIAN/AFP/Getty Images

    What Putin Wants in Syria

    Feb 28, 2018 Nina L. Khrushcheva argues that Russia's goal is to send a message that popular revolts against its allies will not succeed.

  6. The Syrian Time Bomb
    Getty Images JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images

    The Syrian Time Bomb

    Feb 22, 2018 Joschka Fischer warns that recent escalation of the conflict could lead to another great-power conflict in the Middle East.

  1. stiglitz331_serggnGetty Images_techregulation serggn/Getty Images

    A Big Defeat for Big Tech

    Joseph E. Stiglitz

    Tech companies know that if there is an open, democratic debate about data security, consumers’ concerns about digital safeguards will win out. And while the industry's lobbyists tried to ensure that no such debate could ever occur, one of their more cynical moves has now been exposed and thwarted.

    details how the industry tried to slip extraordinary protections against regulation into US trade agreements.
  2. zizek27_Giles ClarkeGetty Images_jimmycherizier Giles Clarke/Getty Images

    Haiti’s Proud Boys

    Slavoj Žižek

    If we measure a failed state by the cracks in the edifice of its power, reflected in brewing ideological civil wars, deadlocked assemblies, and increasingly insecure public spaces, we must recognize that the United States is not so unlike Haiti. Both have given rise to violent gangs with political ambitions.

    warns that rich Western democracies are not immune to politically motivated gang violence.
  3. hedegaard11_y Dursun AydemirAnadolu via Getty Images_parliament elections Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu via Getty Images

    Unity Is Europe’s Greatest Asset

    Connie Hedegaard emphasizes the importance of stability amid persistent economic and geopolitical crises.
  4. qian34_PEDRO PARDOAFP via Getty Images_immigration PEDRO PARDO/AFP via Getty Images

    The Truth About US Immigration

    Nancy Qian warns that overheated campaign-season rhetoric is dangerously polarizing and ultimately self-defeating.
  5. mueller51_ David McNewGetty Images_gop trump David McNew/Getty Images

    The Zombification of Political Parties

    Jan-Werner Mueller argues that Donald Trump’s capture of the GOP’s organizational machinery recalls authoritarian tactics elsewhere.
  6. basu100_David Dee DelgadoGetty Images_newyork David Dee Delgado/Getty Images

    The Economic Consequences of Legal Behavior

    Kaushik Basu highlights the potential benefits of emphasizing adherence to the spirit of laws, if not their letter.
  7. brown106_KOLA SULAIMONAFP via Getty Images_nigeriaschool Kola Sulaimon/AFP via Getty Images

    For Nigeria’s Schools, Safety Must Come First

    Gordon Brown writes that the latest mass abduction of students underscores the dilemma facing parents throughout the country.
  8. owoo1_disabled iStock / Getty Images Plus

    Give Women with Disabilities a Chance

    Nkechi S. Owoo explains what is needed to protect and empower one of the world’s most vulnerable demographic groups.
  9. op_mkurz3_Spencer PlattGetty Images_rustbelt Spencer Platt/Getty Images

    How Capitalism Became a Threat to Democracy

    Mordecai Kurz examines the economic policies and market dynamics that have ushered in America's Second Gilded Age.

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