The New Cold War In Syria: Understanding The Syrian Conflict Through Proxy Wars Between The United States And Russia

Abstract

Since 2011, Syrians have been facing a never-ending conflict that has cost the lives of thousands and displaced millions of others. Initially, the Syrian civil war was seen as just another conflict of the Arab Spring. However, today Syria is the battlefield of many interested actors, most crucially the United States and Russia. These two key Actors’ involvement reminds political scientists of the Soviet intervention of Afghanistan, which had a devastating impact on the country. While analyzing the growing roles of both the United States and the Russian Federation, this paper examines the Syrian revolution as it relates to broader global foreign policy. I argue that the Syrian war has developed into a proxy war between the US and Russia. Despite the fact that the Syrian conflict is by far one of the most violent conflicts in contemporary world history and the number of civilian casualties has reached record highs, this seven-year war has become the newest hub for the US-Russian modern-day Cold War.