Abstract:
Analysts predicted a shift in Syria‘s foreign and domestic politics after the death
of Hafiz el-Assad in 2000. Expectations were high that Bashar will initiate political,
social and economic reforms. These expectations began to fade when Bashar‘s policies
started looking more of an extension of his father‘s policies. Though Bashar introduced
significant domestic economic reforms, his foreign policy choices remained anchored
on his father‘s geopolitical principles. Nevertheless, Bashar‘s geopolitical world
changed after the terrorist attacks of 9/11 and the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. This
thesis examines how Bashar responded to the geopolitical threats unleashed by the
invasion and occupation of Iraq. It traces the continuity and change in Syria‘s foreign
policy under Bashar in a number of pertinent geopolitical theatres, namely Lebanon,
Iran, Turkey and Iraq. The thesis closes by evaluating the impact the 2011 popular
protests in Syria on Bashar‘s foreign policy choices.
