Military Intervention in Mali vs. Syria: When is the Path Rocky or Paved?

Military Intervention in Mali vs. Syria: When is the Path Rocky or Paved?

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

By: Rachel Brandenburg

France’s rapid intervention in Mali in early January is particularly striking when compared to the lengthy debate over international intervention in Syria, which has thus far produced only inaction. USIP’s Rachel Brandenburg explores what considerations made French intervention in Mali feasible while constraining action in Syria.

Type: Analysis

Conflict Analysis & Prevention

The Israeli-Palestinian Standoff: More Risks Emerging

The Israeli-Palestinian Standoff: More Risks Emerging

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

By: Thomas Omestad

The hobbled Palestinian economy, the weakness of the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority that governs much of the West Bank and the dormancy of the peace process together may be increasing the risk of a deterioration of the conflict and an rise in violence on the West Bank in 2013. USIP’s continuing series on “sleeper risks” takes a closer look at this potentially explosive dynamic.

Type: Analysis

Conflict Analysis & Prevention

USIP Experts Launch Mideast Security Series at Wilson Center Event

USIP Experts Launch Mideast Security Series at Wilson Center Event

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

By: USIP Staff

A new strategic landscape is emerging in the Middle East as authoritarian states such as Russia and China attempt to use the upheaval of the Arab Spring to increase their regional influence and strengthen their efforts to pose a counterweight to U.S. power and Western norms on democracy and human rights, USIP’s Daniel Brumberg and Steven Heydemann said at a public forum on January 29.

Type: Analysis

Conflict Analysis & Prevention

Syria: Regional Fallout from the Civil War

Syria: Regional Fallout from the Civil War

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

By: Thomas Omestad

In the first in a USIP series on “sleeper risks” in 2013, possible regional effects of Syria’s civil war are examined. If the regime of Bashar Al-Assad falls back into an Alawite-dominated area under intensifying rebel pressure, the fragmentation of the Syrian state could encourage Kurdish and other separatism, raising questions about the post-Ottoman state system in the Levant.

Type: Analysis

Conflict Analysis & Prevention