The United States has a long history of enacting sanctions on Syria, beginning in 1979 with the designation of Syria as a “state sponsor of terrorism.” Initial measures were limited to restrictions on weapons transfers and targeted sanctions on government officials...
Syria
Whither the War in Syria?
David Cortright is the Director of Policy Studies and the Peace Accords Matrix at Notre Dame’s Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies. The Trump administration will face one of its most difficult foreign policy tests in Syria, with a high likelihood of...
De-Ba`thification and the Rise of ISIS
Aysegul Keskin Zeren As the war against ISIS unfolds, acknowledging the conditions and events that paved the way for ISIS is crucial for rethinking strategy. As a result of a decade of instability in Iraq and more than three years of civil war in Syria, ISIS had...
The Role of Diplomacy in Countering ISIS
David Cortright The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is a clear and present danger to international security that must be stopped. The question is how. President Obama said there are no military solutions to this crisis, but he has sent American soldiers back to...
The ISIS Stalemate: It’s the Long Game
Ebrahim Moosa With another U.S. aid worker beheaded by ISIS and unreported civilian deaths caused by U.S. airstrikes in ISIS controlled territories in Iraq and Syria, the conflict is taking on the features of a military stalemate. As long as ISIS is America’s problem,...
Preventing War with Iran: Have Prospects Improved?
Ellen Laipson The election of President Hassan Rouhani has augured in a wave of hopefulness that conflict between Iran and the U.S. could be avoided. But the escalating crisis in Syria has cast a shadow over prospects for improvement. The August 21 use of chemical...