Syria
Syria: The consequences of intellectual failure and moral neglect
Questions about what Western governments wish Syria to become – including where it fits in terms of their strategic interests, its humanitarian and population movement…
Bringing home Australian children trapped in Syrian camps
The Covid-19 pandemic has dominated global and local news to such an extent for the last 18 months that there remains room for little else. But the aftermath of military campaigns…
Syrian stasis
Of all the Middle East challenges facing the new Biden administration, Syria is unlikely to be at the top of the list. With the territorial defeat of Islamic State, it appears…
The Beirut explosion and the plight of Syrian refugees
When you have the privilege of working in international relations, there are some experiences that stay with you for life. There are the places you go and the people you meet…
It’s always about the oil in the Middle East
Despite US President Donald Trump’s claim that the United States no longer needed Middle East oil following the attacks on the Abqaiq production facilities in Saudi Arabia in…
The obstacles to Syrian aid
On Saturday last week, following weeks of lobbying by humanitarian agencies and difficult diplomatic negotiations, the UN Security Council renewed its authorisation for the UN and…
Cashing in the chips at the Trump casino
Big moves in the Middle East often seek to take advantage of a favourable political climate in Washington. And there has rarely been as favourable time in Washington for some…
Syria: Thumbs down
Back in December, US President Donald Trump signed the National Defence Authorisation Act, which included was a set of measures known as the Caesar Syrian Civilian Protection Act,…
With Syrian prosecutions, a rare case of universal jurisdiction
With so much else going awry in the world, it’s perhaps easy to forget that the Syrian civil war is rolling on into its tenth year. Scholars and policymakers have long been…
Need To Know: Brett McGurk on America’s strategy to defeat ISIS
Given the increasingly familiarity of video conferencing during working from home arrangements, we thought to take the opportunity to commence a new series of interviews with key…