Abstract:
The Arab revolts that began in 2011 led to a major transformation in the
contemporary history of the Middle East and ushered in a new pattern of
power vying by international and regional powers for influence in the
Middle East (ME). The West and Turkey supported the rebels while
Russia, Iran and the Lebanese Hizbullah backed the Syrian regime. The
turning point occurred in 2015, when Russia intervened militarily with
the aim of returning to the global stage as a major geopolitical power.
Russia's direct involvement in Syria changed the geopolitical alignment
in the region. This article examines the geopolitics of the Syrian conflict
by focusing on the national interests of Russia, Turkey and Iran. The
political agendas of the three countries in the different stages of the
conflict diverged and converged due to the complexity of the conflict and
the policies of other external actors in Syria. This article also refers to the
internationally sponsored Geneva peace talks, and to the parallel Astana
peace track that was sponsored by Russia, Turkey and Iran , and the
strategies used by them to achieve their geostrategic and geo-economic
goals.
